


LOVE ME PLEASE?

by seesavv



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: (but it's more like Harry realising he likes men and he's a bit conflicted and confused), (i guess), Angst, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, OT5 Friendship, Pining, Recreational Drug Use, References to Depression, Slow Burn, Unrequited Love, Zouis frienship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-03
Updated: 2018-10-11
Packaged: 2019-07-06 13:11:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15886731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seesavv/pseuds/seesavv
Summary: "C'mon, mate," Harry insists."Oh shup up! Don't call me 'mate', you twat!" Louis shouts and frowns deeply.Harry tries his best not to laugh, but there's something about Louis when he's drunk; he always gets so grumpy and pouty."How do I call you then?" Harry asks and then bites his lower lip, trying to hide his amusement. He struggles holding Louis who would totally fall on his ass if it wasn't for him.Louis looks at him; he stares at Harry's lips."Baby," he says in a sigh and throws his arms around Harry's neck, "call me baby, like when we fuck."





	1. Chapter 1

**[Zayn]**  
They were supposed to meet Liam and Sylvi outside the club exactly 40 minutes ago, but Louis took an hour long shower and now they are late. Zayn doesn't really care because he didn't want to come in the first place. He came because Louis asked him to. Zayn does everything for Louis, and it's okay because Louis does everything for him, too.

And why do they arrive separately? The four of them? They live in the same building; Liam and his girlfriend literally live next door. Zayn always insists on coming together, but he knows it's because of Louis; he takes too long to get ready, so the couple usually go to eat or something first, because Liam hates waiting and Sylvi is always up for a snack before a drinks night out. They usually go to eat, and then they meet Zayn and Louis at the club.

Zayn hates clubbing; he rarely drinks and he doesn't like dancing so when Louis finds someone to dance with, Zayn goes outside to smoke. It's really boring but he goes out with his friends anyway because he always takes care of Louis. They don't really talk about it, but Louis isn't very good at knowing his limits. He's getting better though; now he's more in control. There was a time, after they graduated high school, when they were kind of lost; not knowing what to do with their lives, they would go out and Louis would get drunk all the time. It was a mess but they went through it together, as they always do. Zayn has known Louis since they were kids, he knows him more than anybody. That's another reason why he doesn't like clubbing; it reminds him of those days.

It's been a while since the last time they went out together. They've all been busy, especially Louis; he's double majoring, so school work is kicking his ass, and he insists on keeping his job even when Zayn has told him he doesn't mind the rent or any expenses. Zayn has enough money and he doesn't mind paying for Louis, but his friend is stubborn and now he's super stressed and tired all the time. So maybe this night out is a good idea, Zayn contemplates it now; it might help Louis to relax and have fun.

Now they're about to enter the club, Louis' hair looks amazing and he's wearing Zayn's _Stone Roses_ [t-shirt](https://data.whicdn.com/images/140196651/large.jpg), black skinny jeans, a black jacket with some striped design on the sleeves and his classic Vans. Louis looks just stunning, and Zayn, well, Zayn thinks he should have put more effort on his own [outfit](https://78.media.tumblr.com/ac2ff7be3510006fa965f844c9aa74ad/tumblr_ne7m19Qrsl1rqvriio1_500.png); he's wearing a beige sweater; very simple, black skinny jeans and black boots, definitely not a club outfit.

Anyway, Louis is in a good mood and so is Zayn. Tonight is gonna be a good night.  
  
**[Louis]**  
The music is too loud and Louis had forgot what was this like, he almost hates it already, but he reminds himself that this was his and Liam's idea and that Zayn agreed to come just for him. He knows he feels like this because it's been a while, and maybe this environment brings him bad memories, after all, the last time he came to this club, like 7 weeks ago exactly, him and Matt broke up, and it was an ugly and stupid fight, because Matt is ugly and stupid. No. Louis knows that only the 'stupid' part is true, because Matt isn't ugly at all. But who cares, Matt is an asshole and thank heavens they broke up.

So there's that, and he's gonna have a good time with his friends now.

They spot Liam and Sylvi as soon as they enter, because they are probably the loudest people here, and it looks like they have company.

"They already replaced us," Louis jokes.

"It's your fault, bro, we're late 'cos of you," Zayn says.

"I know, shut up" Louis laughs. "What the fuck, man," he whispers as they approach the table; it looks like a drinking competition between Sylvi and a man, while Liam and another dude encourage them very enthusiastically. Sylvi wins and procedes to celebrate with Liam very loudly, and the other dude laughs while the man who lose curses and finishes his drink anyway.

"You're here!" Sylvi cheers when she sees them. She's very drunk.

"Hey!" Liam greets them, too.

"Look, he's Irish, too!" Sylvi says pointing at the man who was drinking with her, and her own Irish accent sounds thicker than ever.

"He's Irish and he's gonna pay for our drinks tonight because my girl kicked his ass! Wooo!" Liam whoops and then kisses his girlfriend.

"Yeah, fuck that," the man says laughing, "I'm Niall, by the way." And yes, he sounds very Irish, and very drunk, Louis notices.

"Oh, shit, right," Liam says, "this is Niall," and Niall greets them again, "and this is Harry" Liam adds pointing at the other man.

"Er, I'm Louis, nice to meet you" he says looking at both men.

"Zayn."

And Louis could laugh now because that's all Zayn says; just "Zayn" and a weak nod. He's so special, Louis thinks.

"Nice to meet you, too," Niall says smiling.

"Guys, Harry's our new neighbor!" Sylvi speaks again.

"He moved to our building," Liam adds.

"Yeah, like 5 days ago," Harry says.

"We just met actually," Liam says, "I mean, not now, not here," he's very tipsy, "we met outside the building and-"

"They gave us a ride," Sylvi interrupts his boyfriend, "and now here we are!"

"You drived here? You're driving and now you're drinking?" Zayn asks looking at Harry and Niall, but it sounds more like a statement than a question, and he doesn't try to hide his judgemental tone.

"No, fuck. No, man," Harry hurries to answer, "we- er, my dad was driving, not me, he- uh my dad was helping at home- him and Niall, they were helping me, and when my dad was leaving I asked him to drive us here and, uh then we met Liam and Sylvi, and when they said they were coming here they joined us," Harry finishes. And that's too much information, Louis thinks. And Harry talks slow. And his voice is very deep. But he's also very drunk so, whatever.

"Uh, okay," says Zayn slowly, too slowly. And maybe he's thinking the same as Louis; that it was too much information. Or maybe he's mocking the way Harry talks.

"Yeah, Zaynie, don't worry, babe," Sylvi says.

"Let's drink!" Niall says excitedly, and he sounds drunker than before, and probably he wasn't even paying attention because that was random.  
  
\---  
They've been drinking a lot, even Zayn have had a couple of beers. Niall keeps paying for the drinks and he doesn't seam to care, Liam told him to forget about the bet but he insisted on paying.  
  
\---  
Harry and Niall went to the bar _again_ , for another round and that gives the friends time to have a little chat.

"So, do we like them?" Louis asks Zayn.

"Hey, don't be like that," says Sylvi frowning, and Liam laughs because he knows his friends are like _that_.

"What? They're not here, we can talk about them," Louis jokes, and Zayn smiles at him.

"And why you have to ask Zayn? Can't you make that decision by yourself?" Sylvi questions.

"What desision?" Louis acts dumb.

"Wheter you like them or not?" Sylvi says and stares at him, and then at Zayn.

"Because Zayn knows, he just _knows_ , man. He's got this thing- this _gift_ , y'know, he can see people's auras and shit," Louis answers nonchalant as if he's making any sense.

"Bullshit," Sylvi says, and now she's laughing.

"But it's true!" Louis says, "we always ask him his opinion on people. Tell her, Liam," he adds looking at Liam. And Zayn's grinning.

"It's true, babe, Zayn has the last word. Always," Liam tells his girlfriend.

"Oh really? Even with me?" Sylvi tries to sound annoyed, "did you ask Zayn _his_ opinion on me before dating me?" She crosses her arms. And Louis is already laughing.

"Actually," Liam giggles, "I did, yeah, I asked him first." And Sylvi's jaw drops.

"Aren't you glad, tho, that Zayn gave you a 'yes'?" Louis says. Zayn and Liam nod in agreement.

"Uh yes, I- I mean yes, that's nice... because he didn't know me, but- but what the fuck? What if he had said no," she's facing Liam now.

"I'd have dated you anyway, love," Liam says and kisses her cheek. "I just asked him his opinion, y'know, he had said 'no' before, y'know, to other people and that's fine," Liam says shrugging.

"Yeah, he said no to Matt, and he was fucking right!" Louis says and they all laugh. "I wish I had fucking listened to him back then," he adds, and they keep laughing.

\---  
Niall and Harry are back with more drinks, and as soon as they take their seats Harry looks at Zayn.

"So, Zayn, how do you spell your name?" Harry asks. Weird, Louis thinks.

"Uh, Z-A-Y-N," it's all Zayn says. Louis would have asked why. Harry just nods. Is that it? Louis thinks, what a weirdo.

"Aren't you gonna ask _me_? How is _my_ name spelled?" Louis questions after a moment.

Harry turns to look at him with an amused expression.

"I mean, I guess I can tell, man," Harry answers and shurgs. "Your name isn't uncommon like Zayn's, I- this is the first time I've ever heard Zayn's name," he adds.

"Yeah, same," Niall agrees.

"But maybe you're wrong," Louis says. "Maybe it's not spelled like you think it is," he rises his brows and looks at his friends, he looks for approval or something; it's stupid. And he can see that Zayn gives Sylvi the _Louis-is-talking-shit_ look, and she snorts.

"Uh, okay, how is it then?" Harry says, and he's clearly amused by the situation, and so is Niall.

"Uh, no?" Louis frowns. " _You_ tell me how you think it is," he adds, and yes, maybe he is talking shit right now.

They all laugh, but he keeps waiting for Harry's answer.

"Okay, hmm," Harry hums. "L-O-U-I-E," he offers.

"See? You're wrong, genius," Louis says sarcastically. And apparently Harry finds it funny because he laughs very loudly, he even grabs his belly.

"How is it then?" Harry asks still laughing.

"L-O-U-I-S," Louis answer rising his brows.

"What? No, man, that doesn't make sense," Niall says.

"Yes, it does?" Louis says exasperated, frowning like they're all stupid.

"No, man, it doesn't," Niall says amused. And Louis glares. And why are they even discussing this?

"But, like, that's French," Harry speaks again, and Louis looks at him now. "I mean, the way you pronounce your name paired with that spelling is French. Are you French, _Louis_?" He adds, emphasising the pronunciation.

"What? No, I'm not. Ugh, you're stupid, just say you're stupid and you're talking shit," Louis says annoyed.

"What? I'm not stupid, I'm right," Harry says and bites his tongue and then his lower lip, and he keeps smiling so big, like he's enjoying it. It's really infuriating.

"You _are_ wrong, tho. You are!" Louis is losing it, and now Zayn's laughing because he knows Louis too well.

"Louis, shut the fuck up," Liam tells him, and he's laughing too, the fucker, but Louis doesn't even look at him, because he hasn't finished with Harry yet.

"You're so wrong! _Both_ are French, so that's not even a good argument! And no, I don't have to be French to have this name," Louis answers, and maybe he should stop drinking.

"Your name should be just _Lewis_ , man," Harry says emphasizing the 's', "like, that's the English version," he adds and grabs another beer.

"What? No!" Louis says frowning and shaking his head like Harry is saying the most stupid thing he has ever heard, "why would-"

"And 'Luu-ee' sounds too pretentious; it kinda suits you, tho," Harry interrupts him, and then sips his beer.

Louis stares at Harry, he's offended, he's angry, he's gonna kick Harry's drunk ass. And Harry just smirks satisfied. And okay, that's kind of hot, Louis thinks.

"I'm not pretentious! You don't fucking know me! You're just talking shit!" Louis could hit him now, but he doesn't know how to.

"Louis, chill, he's just joking," Liam says. And why the fuck are they still laughing? Niall and Sylvi can bearily breathe. And Zayn obviously wants to laugh too but he's trying not to, he's rubbing Louis' back instead, maybe to calm him down but it's actually annoying him more.

"I'm not joking, I do think you're pretentious," Harry says still smirking, looking at him in the eye. And what the fuck? What an idiot.

"Dude, stop," Niall says to Harry, then looks at Louis, "he's just kidding, I swear, he's just being a shit, you're not pretentious," he says sweetly but still laughing.

"Yeah, babe, you're not. You look so cute when you get angry," Sylvi adds pouting.

"Anyway," Zayn says placing his empty bottle on the table, it looks like he's gonna change the subject but,

" _My_ name... is actually spelled with an I, not a Y, but I just think it's cooler with a Y, isn't it?" He says looking around.

"Genius," Niall agrees clapping, "cheers, I'll drink to that, man" and he finishes his drink.

"Ugh, I'm going to the bathroom," Louis stands up, and thank fuck he isn't too drunk and he can walk.  
  
\---  
He fixes his fringe again, and a drunk Louis stares at him back. The mirror is dirty, or maybe his vision is kind of blury, and he doesn't feel that drunk but he probably is. He tries to pay attention to the music in the background, but he doesn't recognize the sound, and Harry is so hot, he thinks. Yep, he's drunk.

"Okay, let's go back," he says to his reflection, and tries not to feel so dumb about it.

He starts walking out, or in? Same thing. And he spots Harry. He's not with the rest; he's on the phone, he's leaning on a wall, frowning, trying to listen to whoever's on the phone. He's very tall, and he's pinching his lip with two fingers, and his hand is big, Louis notices, but maybe it's just the distance, he tells himself. And. Wait. That's stupid; the distance should make things smaller not bigger. Fuck it, he's not thinking. He stares at Harry. Harry, who _bullied_ him a moment ago. Nah, he's being dramatic. Harry, just Harry. Harry, who's wearing a gray [hoodie](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DWLBpU1WkAEbT16.jpg) that says 'DAMN' in capital letters on the front, and Louis is sure that's a Kendrick Lamar album, isn't it? Whatever, he's gonna look it up later, he thinks. And that's not even an appropriate outfit for a night out; he looks like he's going to the gym, but he's wearing jeans; skinny jeans. Whatever, he thinks. Harry. And that's not even a good name, like, for someone who was making fun of someone else's name, he should at least have a decent name himself, right? Fuck him. Harry, who's running his big hand frantically through his hair. He looks different now, maybe because he's not laughing or smiling or smirking like an idiot. This is another version of Harry. It's too much.

Louis goes back into the bathroom and stares at his reflection for a couple of minutes. He has random thoughts, like the fact (yes, fact) that he's the best dressed out of the group. Like, Zayn's wearing a sweater, he looks like he's going to church or to his grandma's. Liam and Sylvi look like they're matching outfits, and that's only cute when gay couples do it, he thinks, but his opinion is totally biased. Finally, Niall's outfit is very similar to Harry's, just not good enough. But who cares. He needs to stop thinking now.  
  
\---  
When he joins the group again, Harry's there, too, and he's laughing again. Good. He looks good.

"Are we good, Luigi?" Harry turns to him as soon as he sits. And no. He did not call him that.

"Fuck you."

"Oh Louis, he's joking," Liam says, "learn how to take a jo-"

"Fuck you, too," Louis interrupts him. They all laugh again; they're all drunk by now, even Zayn.

"Hey, Louis," Harry calls him again, Louis frowns and looks at him.

"I said fuck off," Louis says annoyed.

"I apologize, okay? I'm sorry, are we good?" Harry says and it sounds sincere, and his voice mellow. His eyes are green, Louis notices. He probably noticed that before and his subconscious stored that important piece of information somewhere in his head, but right now looking at Harry in the eyes is a whole new experience.

"Whatever," Louis acts unaffected and looks away.

"C'mon, he said he's sorry, Lou, look at him," says a very drunk Sylvi. And no, Louis better not look at him again.

"Ugh, okay, we're good," he says not looking at Harry.

"Yaaaaay!" Niall shouts with too much enthusiasm.  
  
**[Zayn]**  
They shouldn't have but they stayed for more drinks and now they're outside the club waiting for the Uber, they called two services; Niall's gonna share with Zayn and Louis, and Harry with Sylvi and Liam.

"Yo, Zayn, you didn't invite Zoey," says Liam, maybe to make conversation.

"Oh, right, Zoey. Zoey and Zayn, sounds good, yeah?" Sylvi says smiling.

"Yeah, yeah," Louis says and smiles too, "told ya, bro," he says elbowing Zayn.

Niall is paying attention to the conversation, while Harry's busy on his phone.

"Are you guys dating? You and Zoey?" Sylvi asks Zayn, and she doesn't sound so drunk now, maybe a little sleepy.

"Eh, no, we're not dating,"

" _Yet_ ," Louis add and fist bumps his friend. And Zayn smiles and blushes a little.

"So you're planning on, y'know, ask her to be your girlfriend?" Liam speaks again.

"Mind your business, mate," Louis says while he lights a cigarette and hands one to Zayn, who didn't have to ask for it, "you're too nosy, Liam," he adds.

"Don't smoke, loser," Harry says before Liam can say anything. He's looking at Louis, he clearly directs that comment to Louis, so Zayn's not gonna say anything. Besides he doesn't really care about what this dude he just met thinks or says, and he can see Harry's intentions; he just wants to piss Louis off. And it works.

"What are you gonna do about it, pal?" Louis challenges.

"Just sayin'," Harry says like nothing.

"Let's just share that one, bro," Zayn says pointing at Louis' cigarette. He says it partly to change the subject and partly because their ride will be be here soon and they won't have time to finish smoking.

"Kay, babe," Louis mouths sweetly to Zayn. He probably caught that Zayn's intention was to change the subject.

They smoke in silence for a while. Now Niall's on his phone, it looks like he's texting, who knows. The rest are just quiet, maybe they're just too tired or too drunk to talk.

"Did you know that smoking stunts your growth?" Harry speaks again. He's looking at Louis, tilting his head like he's talking to five year old. Zayn snorts, Louis frowns, and Sylvi hides her face behind Liam's back mouthing 'oh shit' trying not to laugh too loud. Niall and Liam don't even try to be subtle, they just laugh.

"I'm guessing you're aware of that," Harry adds, eyeing Louis from head to toe with a suggestive expression.

"Oi, what the fuck?!" Louis sounds proper angry now.  
Harry smirks pleased.

"Bro," Zayn says, and as simple as that, Louis looks at him and calms down immediately. Zayn holds his wrist and caresses him. Harry's gaze flicks to their hands for a moment, and there's a hint of uneasiness. Zayn can't really tell what it is.

"Stop, man," Niall says looking at Harry, shaking his head but laughing anyway.

"Okay, time to go," says Liam because luckily the car is here; their car. So Harry leaves with Sylvi and Liam.

Zayn, Niall and Louis only have to wait a few minutes until their Uber picks them up.  
  
\---  
They get in the car, Louis takes the front sit.Niall hasn't stopped talking, but Zayn kind of likes him already; Niall's very charming.

"So you and Harry are roomates," Louis interrupts Niall's rambling. Louis' tone is flat, and disinterested, but Zayn knows he's faking it.

"No, man. I live with my parents, not ashamed; I'd stay with them forever," Niall answers smiling. "I'm staying at Harry's tho, for a few days to help him bring his stuff and all that," he explains. "Harry, my mate, he's independent now," he jokes.

"Great," says Louis sarcastically. He's so drunk and exasperated that he's probably gonna start talking shit now. Zayn sighs in anticipation.

"He was just messing with you, by the way," Niall says before Louis can start.

"I don't really care, mate," Louis mutters. Zayn shakes his head in amusement, but Louis can't see him.

"But he's a nice guy, I swear," Niall says amused.

"Whatever." And that's all Louis says untill they get home.  
  
\---  
Harry, Liam and Sylvi are waiting for them outside the building. Zayn was hoping they weren't there; Harry specifically.

"Think 'm gonna smoke, bro," Zayn informes looking at Louis.

"Here," Louis hands him the lighter and the pack of cigarettes.

Zayn fishes his phone in his pocket and checks the time. 4:33 a.m.

"Okay, Zaynie, goodnight then," Sylvi says sweetly and approaches to kiss him on the cheek, then goes to Louis, "and goodnight, babe," she says kissing him on both cheeks, assuming that Louis is gonna stay and smoke with Zayn. She's right.

Harry looks at Louis who's lighting the cigarette, and Zayn prays that for once he's not gonna comment some shit that could piss Louis off.  
He doesn't, thank fuck.

"Okay, see ya then," says Liam lazily.  
  
\---  
They're alone now.

"You okay?" Zayn asks.

Louis just nods and smiles; his crinkle soft smile. He's okay, Zayn decides.

"I was hoping to see you dance tonight, babe," Zayn says jokingly.

"Yeah, yeah, I thought so, too," Louis says and his voice sounds calm and warm.

"All we did was drink, bro. I'm gonna regret this," Zayn says grimacing. Louis mirrors his expression mockingly, and that makes Zayn laugh.

They smoke in silence and when they finish they hurry to enter the building because Louis starts to get cold.

When they reach their floor, the first thing they see is Niall lying on the hallway outside Liam's door. He's laughing and has no shoes on. Liam's also there, sitting on the floor, leaning on his door. And Harry. Great. Harry's standing by the door across Liam's door, and Zayn guesses that's his apartment. Sylvi's nowhere to be seen, she was very tired so she's probably asleep by now. Zayn sighs, because he might be a little drunk but he knows he has to go to bed and pray for his hangover not to kill him the next day, and yet these idiots are here doing whatever-the-fuck they're doing at almost 5 a.m.

"What are you doing?" Zayn questions.

"Hey! We were waiting for you guys. Niall wanted to wait for you guys, he wanted to say goodnight properly," Liam says smiling lazily, he's very sleppy.

"Yeah, I wanted to tell you guys," Niall starts talking, he sounds so relaxed, like he's about to fall asleep, "I wanted to say that we should do something tomorrow, like hang out again," he continues, "like, I know you'll probably sleep 'til noon, but after that, y'know, like lunch or something." He finishes talking and looks at them like they're the sun, with a big smile. He's so sweet, Zayn thinks.

"You mean in a few hours, 'cos it's almost five, mate," Zayn says.

"Yeah, like in a few hours, after we get some sleep," Niall says.

"Sure, love, we can do that," Louis says and Niall glows when he hears the term of endearment.

"Okay then," says Liam standing up, "see you in a few hours, babes," he says to Zayn and Louis, then turns to Harry who's helping Niall stand up, "you too, lads. Tonight was fun."

"Goodnight, Liam," says Niall and hugs him. Harry laughs and shakes his head.

Niall finally lets go of the hug, then Liam enters his apartment and waves at them. And Zayn doesn't know how to react because they're acting like drunks and yet they're so adorable. Zayn just wants to go to bed. Then Niall approaches him and Louis and hugs them, too, at the same time, and okay, he's so sweet and silly.

"Goodnight, friends. It was so fun, so so fun, man," he says and it's actually adorable, Zayn thinks.

Harry's still there just looking.

"Okay, going to bed now, mate," Louis says trying to free himself politely from the hug.

"Yeah, you do that, guys, go to rest," Niall says, then looks at Louis, "and your name is absolutely beautiful, man," he adds. Zayn notices that Harry smirks like an idiot at that.

Louis rises his brows and giggles.

"Okay, mate, goodnight," he says nicely.

Louis obviously didn't see Harry because he would be very angry right now. Zayn knows Louis is a bit childish sometimes, but to be fair Harry's being childish, too. And he's a bit of an asshole, too.  
  
\---  
Zayn's finally in bed, after a few more goodnight hugs from Niall, and a distant but polite nod from Harry.

He's about to fall asleep when he hears the door open.

"Zayn," Louis whispers.

"What do you want?" Zayn says groaning.

"Are you awake?"

What a question, Zayn's about to make a sarcastic comment but then,

"Yes, you are now, duh," and then there's Louis slipping into his bed covering himself with the duvet, only his head visible, "can I turn the light on? The lamp? I need to see your face when I talk to you," he says, probably pouting. Zayn just groans and Louis' interpretation of that groan is 'yes, you can'. And fuck it.

"So," Louis says after a moment.

Zayn sighs and opens his eyes.

"Harry." It's all he says.

"Yes."

"You like him."

"I do," Louis whines.

"You like him, even though he's a complete asshole," Zayn says flatly. He knows his friend more than anybody, so it's not a question; it's a statement.

"God, I know, he's so annoying! Ugh." Louis complains.

"Babe?" Zayn says after a moment.

"Mmm?"

"You're forgetting something important, tho," Zayn says wincing, and his tone suggestive.

"Ugh, I know."

"Ugh, ugh!" Zayn mocks. Louis giggles.

"But, do you think he realized I'm gay? Like, do I look gay?"

"Louis, you can't just _look_ gay," Zayn says emphasizing. "that's not a thing. I mean, it shouldn't be like that. You should know," he continues, in a disapproving tone. "You can't assume those kind of things," he finishes.

"I know!" Louis says groaning, "but, you know what I meant, c'mon," he adds pouting.

"Yeah, okay," Zayn sighs. "You don't look _stereotypically_ gay, but you don't look straight either, y'know what I mean," he says shrugging, "that's until people get to know you better, like, you sit on every man's lap and you flirt a lot," he jokes.

Louis rolls his eyes and giggles.

"But, you know," Zayn continues carefully, "I think he's dating," he says scratching his chin. "Y'know, I wasn't like, paying attention to all the shit they were talking about, but he got a call, and I heard he said it was his girlfriend, so he went outside, I think, to answer his phone." He finishes a little hesitant.

"Right. I remember," Louis murmurs.

"No, you don't. You weren't there, babes, you went to the restroom."

"No, but like, I saw him," Louis sighs, "I saw him on the phone when I was about to come back to the table."

"Uh, that's dumb, I thought he went outside like a normal person, I mean, the music was fucking loud." Zayn says making a face, "so, now we know he's stupid. You have a thing for dumbasses, I see," he says jokingly, maybe to soothe the conversation because after all, he knows Louis is gonna be a bit down.

"He was there talking on the phone, leaning on the wall. He looked a bit uneasy, I don't know, he was like... so serious, it was like a different person, but that's 'cos the asshole was laughing all the time, like, it was weird seeing him so serious."

"That's creepy, man. I can't believe you were there staring at him like a creep," Zayn says teasingly.

"I was drunk, shut up." Louis says, he sounds sleepy.

"Lame excuse. And you're _still_ drunk."

"Yeah, a little."

"A little," Zayn echoes.

"Can I sleep here?" Louis asks sounding small.

"Of course, Luigi."

"Eew, I hate you," Louis whines.

Zayn laughs. They both laugh.

"Goodnight, Lou," Zayn says finally.

"Night," Louis mumbles.

 **[Louis]**  
Louis wakes up with the worst headache ever. Maybe that's a bit dramatic, but he certainly feels like dying now, and he has some vague memories of green eyes; he hates the feeling.

He's in Zayn's room, but Zayn isn't there.

"Zayn!" He calls, and his voice sounds like shit. His throat dry.

Zayn's in the room in two minutes with a glass of orange juice, what an angel, Louis thinks.

"What time is it?"

"You sound like shit," Zayn says and goes to grab his phone that's on his nightstand. "Almost two. Sylvi texted me earlier, she woke me up, actually."

"What does she want?"

"Eh, we're going to McDonald's in an hour, with the neighbor and the Irish kid."

"McDonald's?" Louis frowns.

"I know, like losers," Zayn says and takes his t-shirt off, he's probably going to take a shower.

"Are you too cool for McDonald's now?" Louis jokes.

"I'm too cool. Period. 'M too cool for this world, bro."

Louis sticks his tongue out at him.

"Gonna shower now," Zayn speaks again.

"Want me to join you?" Louis says wiggling his brows.

"You wish," Zayn laughs.

"Ugh, fuck yes!"

Zayn keeps laughing cutely.  
\---  
  
Zayn's getting dressed now, and Louis is still in bed, helping him pick up an outfit from there. Louis picks black skinny jeans, black boots, a white shirt, and a brown faux leather jacket. Zayn looks absurdly handsome. The look is complete when Louis styles Zayn's hair with some product, and then hands him aviator sunglasses. Perfect. And he goes back to bed.

"Go to shower now," Zayn tells him.

"Mmm. I don't wanna see Harry," Louis says. He knows it's stupid but he can't help it. Besides Louis knows that Zayn would never judge him or make fun of him, so it's very comforting to talk about his feelings openly.

"C'mon, bro. Maybe his stupid face is uglier in the day light," Zayn says casually.

Louis laughs, but he doesn't attempt to move, he wants to stay in bed all day. Zayn's checking his phone and he's smiling, so Louis guesses he's texing Zoey. Good for him, Zoey is amazing.

Louis should move now, but he keeps thinking about last night; about Harry. Then he remembers.

"Zen," he speaks again.

"Mmm?"

"Did you notice Harry's hoodie? Last night?"

"Uh, yeah. What about it?"

"That's a Kendrick Lamar album, isn't it?" Louis questions.

"Yeah, love." Zayn looks like hes thinking. " _DAMN._ It's his fourth album, if I'm correct," Zayn answers, "Eh, 's very good, you should listen to it, but not because Harry _possibly_ likes it," he continues, Louis frowns at that. "Yeah, _possibly_ , because maybe he's the kind of dude who wears band's t-shirts, or eh, musician's merch, in this case, but maybe he doesn't even listen to them, y'know what I mean." He finishes.

"Okay," Louis says giggling and shaking his head. But he knows Zayn's totally right.

"But you should take a shower now, go. I'm gonna play you some music and I'm gonna pick up a very cozy outfit for you, yeah?"

"Okay," Louis says sweetly. "Play _Despacito_ , please." Louis jokes.

"No way, man."

\---  
They're about to leave. Liam called Zayn and said they're waiting outside the building. Louis is very nervous.

"You look... cute, and your hair looks fluffy, I love it," Zayn tells him softly.

Louis is wearing a red crewneck sweatshirt, black joggers and blue sneakers; a mess but he loves it, too. Zayn was right; it's cozy.

Now [they](https://i2-prod.irishmirror.ie/incoming/article5266455.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/One-Direction-arrive-back-in-London.jpg) are ready to go.


	2. Chapter 2

**[Louis]**  
When Zayn and Louis come outside they see Sylvi, Liam and Harry laughing, it seems like they're laughing at something Niall said. Louis remembers that last night, when him and Harry weren't arguing, Niall was the soul of the party.  
  
"Hey, don't be nervous, babe," Zayn says before they get there. Louis smiles and nods.   
  
When Liam sees them, he acts shocked.

"I thought we would have to wait another hour here," he teases.

"Lads," Louis greets them with a nod.

"Hey!" Niall waves smiling; shinning.

"Finally!" Sylvi says, "the story of my life is waiting for Louis."

"I don't even understand it, man, you look like shit. Why would you take so long and come out looking like _that_ ," Liam jokes.

"Don't be mean, we picked up each other's outfits," Louis says pouting.

"Oh, you did a great job, sweetie," Sylvi says looking at Zayn's outfit, "love the jacket," she adds.

"You love the model who's wearing it," Zayn says cheekily.

"Of course," Sylvi caresses Zayn's face.

"You didn't do a very good job, man," Liam says to Zayn, pointing at Louis outfit.

"Louis always looks good, mate, no matter what he wears, face it," Zayn answers. 

Niall smiles at that. And Harry, oh, Harry; he smiles, too. And, wow, that's a dimple, Louis is sure he saw it last night, too. Of course he did. And Zayn was so wrong because Harry's stupid face is actually prettier in the daylight. 

"So, how are you dealing with Louis' hangover?" Liam asks Zayn in a suggestive tone, he's just kidding but it's a fact that Louis is a lot to deal with after a night of excessive drinking. 

"Not so terrible, mate," Zayn answers sweetly. "What about y'all?" he adds looking around.

"I actually feel fresh as an apple," says Niall enthusiastically. 

"Yeah, 'm doing good, too. I went for a run this morning, 'm feeling great," says Harry. 

What a freak, Louis thinks. Him and Zayn share a look, and it's pretty obvious because they look at each other at the same time and they put the same face. Harry catches it and he just smirks and rises a brow, and he looks like he's fighting the urge to say some shit, just like last night.

"We're amazing, too" Liam says, "waiting for you gave us enough time to recover," he teases.  
  
But it's true, they took too long; it's 3:40 p.m.  
  
"Ugh, cry some more, Liam" Louis says, and they all laugh.  
  
"Alright, let's go, I'm hungry," Sylvi says finally.  
  
They start to walk and, wait,  
  
"Are we gonna walk there?" Louis asks incredulous.  
  
"It's like 5 minutes away, you lazy piece of person," Liam says.  
  
"Yes, Lou, we need some fresh air, too," Sylvi adds.  
  
"No way it's 5 minutes, you liar," Louis crosses his arms. And maybe he's being a bit difficult now, but he's inexplicably nervous right now. But it's not necessary inexplicably, he thinks. It's actually very much explicable; it's this boy. It's Harry, he's making Louis nervous with only existing. Harry's not even paying attention to him, he hasn't even talked to him directly, and it's making him anxious and he doesn't know what to do. Last night it was easier being around Harry, Louis thinks. Maybe because he was drunk as shit. He hates feeling like this. And now they're all looking at him. And now Harry looks like he wants to laugh, he looks like he wants to say whatever shit he thought a moment ago when Louis reacted to him going for a run this morning, and he probably thinks Louis is a lazy ass, and it's true, fuck that. Louis is freaking out. And Niall is already laughing.  
  
"Do you want me to carry you, princess?" Liam says rising his brows.  
  
"Ugh, let's go," Louis says rolling his eyes. He's annoying and he knows it, it's just ...his defense mechanism? He thinks.  
  
They walk together and it's very nice. Niall and Sylvi are talking "Irish things," like the things they miss about Ireland. Niall talks a lot, Zayn pays attention to what they say and he's enjoying it; Niall's very funny. It's really nice. Liam and Harry seem to get along very easily, Louis noticed that last night, actually. They are talking about their jobs now, apparently. _Ugh_ , such losers, Louis thinks, but he's trying to listen to them anyway; he's just curious. Harry's a photographer or something, Louis wants to know more.

  
\---  
They finally arrive, and yes, Sylvi was right about the fresh air and all that. And, no, Liam was _not_ right; it was more than 5 minutes.  
  
Niall, Harry and Sylvi order a lot of food; they order burgers, chips and nuggets. Liam and Zayn order just chips, and Louis... Louis wants ice cream.   
  
They eat and talk, Niall asks a lot of questions. And he is very easy to love. And they get along (sober) immediately. Harry's also very nice and funny but Louis hasn't interacted much with him because he's super anxious.

  
\---  
Apparently, last night, before Louis and Zayn arrived, the rest had enough time to get to know each other; talk about what they do and all that kind of stuff, and now they know all they had to know about each other, so Louis decides to ask Niall and Harry some questions. Zayn probably doesn't even care, he's just eating chips.   
  
Louis starts with Niall, obviously. He has barely talked to Harry, and he's not intimidated by Niall at all. Besides, Harry's been checking his phone a lot and he looks a bit off. So, Niall it is. Also, Louis hopes that the conversation will flow easily and he won't have to ask Harry _directly_.  
  
He learns that Niall's 24 years old, Louis assumes Harry's 24 too because Niall said they went to high school together and they've been friends since then.   
  
Niall works at his parents' music store, he kind of owns the store actually, it's called Horan's, and that's Niall's last name.  
  
"I think we bought my guitar there, I remember the name," says Zayn, not very interested in the conversation.  
  
"That was like three years ago, how the fuck can you remember the name of the store?" Liam questions. Zayn just shurgs.  
  
"Zayn, you're so smart, and like, _gifted_ , I don't know," Louis says.  
  
"It's just good memory, Louis, stop calling me 'gifted' everytime I do... anything," Zayn says and laughs.  
  
"But you are so talented, Zaynie, someone has to tell you," Louis says pinching Zayn's cheek. Sylvi reaches Zayn's left cheek and pinches it, too. Liam stars mocking Zayn.  
  
"What about you?" Harry asks suddenly. And his voice is so deep. He's looking at Louis. Oh shit. Louis thought for a second he might had asked Zayn, but he could feel Harry's gaze on him the moment he heard his voice.

"What about me?"   
  
"What do you do? How old are ya?" Harry specifies.  
  
"Uh, I- I'm 21," Louis clears his throat. "I work at a coffee shop, eh, part time. And- eh, I'm majoring in English Literature," he answers.   
  
"And Art History," Zayn adds.  
  
"And he's also the assistant of the Spanish Literature class," Sylvi adds, too.  
  
"I only help to correct some essays or tests."  
  
"Still counts," Sylvi points out.  
  
"See, you're the gifted, bro, not me," Zayn says smiling.  
  
"He's double majoring, and he's the teacher's pet, the nerd," Liam says and they laugh.  
  
"Ugh, I'm a smart kid, what can I say?" Louis jokes.  
  
"That's amazing," Harry says looking at him in the eyes, "I wouldn't have guessed."  
  
"What is that supposed to mean?" Louis questions and looks at Harry, who's silent for a few seconds.  
  
"I don't really know what I meant," Harry says then, frowning a little. He doesn't sound mean or like he's making fun of Louis. It's weird but Louis knows what he means, he just _gets it_ somehow. And Harry is looking at him in a way that makes Louis want to tell him everything, he's looking at him; telling him with his eyes that he will understand, too. He doesn't know what exactly. Maybe he's just being paranoid.  
  
"I'm eh- just don't really know what I want actually," Louis doesn't know why but he feels the need to explain this shit now; he's nervous, " I- I don't know, maybe I'll end up being a librarian or some shit like that," he laughs humorless, "I don't really know what I want, and I think I'm, like, doing what I like but it just isn't enough, like... people tell you to follow your dreams and shit but- eh, I don't know, they tell you to choose a carrer- like your passion and all that shit, whatever makes you happy but I- what if it is what I like and I still feel like I'm going nowhere, I-" he stops his rambling and, of course, they're all looking at him. "I'm just... talking shit," he adds after a moment. "Let's talk about Zayn; what he does is more interesting," he says finally. He's embarrassed, so he fills his mouth with ice cream, and the rest are looking at him, worried maybe. It's just that... he feels kind of lost, and he knows he's got potential and all that, but he feels pressured, indirectly, by his family and his friends, too, sometimes, but mainly by himself.  
  
"Uh, I think you're gonna be alright, Louis," says Niall sweetly.  
  
"Let's talk about something else, please. I think I'm- I don't know. Uh, don't mind me, I'm just talking shit" he says mouth full, and Zayn starts to rub his back to calm him down "Zayn's rich," Louis says finally. Sylvi and Liam laugh at that and their worried faces are gone. Niall and Harry look a bit confused.  
  
"I'm not," says Zayn rolling his eyes but smiling all the same.   
  
"You are!" Sylvi says laughing.  
  
Louis is grateful that his friends are quick and get along with the subject change.   
  
"I'm sorry, I won't tell them what I do," Zayn says pointing at Niall and Harry.   
  
"What? Why not? Is it like, something illegal?" Niall asks.   
  
Sylvi, Liam and Zayn laugh at that.  
  
"Oh c'mon, I wanna know," Niall whines.  
  
"I just met you, guys. I can't tell you. Not yet," Zayn says. He's enjoying it.  
  
"Not _yet_ ; I'm hopeful then," Niall says.   
  
"Yeah, maybe I'll tell you some day," Zayn says smirking. Then he turns to Louis.  
  
"You okay?" He mouths. Louis nods quickly; he doesn't want their eyes on him again. But Harry's eyes are already on him. And now Louis needs more ice cream.  
  
"I want more ice cream, please," he says before he realises he's saying it out loud.  
  
"Gotcha, mate," says Niall and stans up.  
  
"You don't have to, Niall, I'll take care of my child," Liam says and laughs.  
  
"No, I'll go, don't worry," Niall says sweetly and goes.  
  
Louis smiles, and Harry is still looking at him, and he's smiling, too.  
  
Louis notices Harry's phone on the table, someone's calling; the screen is on but the sound is off. Weird.  
  
"Your phone," he tells Harry and points at it.  
  
"Fuck," Harry mutters, "thanks, man," he says to Louis and goes out quickly.  
  


\---  
**[Harry]**  
It's been a week since the last time Harry saw his girlfriend; she went on vacation with her family. She invited him, obviously, but he couldn't go since he had to move and all that. She's been calling him only to complain about her family and it's kind of annoying.  
  
Harry doesn't miss her like he thought he would, and it must be because he's been very busy.   
  
He's been dating Mia for almost two years, and so far the relationship has been... just normal, conventional. Maybe too conventional, but good. It's a healthy relationship; Mia is a good person, and she's very beautiful.  
  
She comes back on Monday and she wants Harry to pick her up. Harry has told her that he can't. He really wants to finish moving hopefully on Monday or Thursday, he needs to go back to his normal life; moving has been very stressful. He wants to settle down already, he wants to get used to his new apartment, and he has some extra work to do so he needs to hurry up. Besides, he knows Mia is being childish; she can easily go home with her parents in their car, but she doesn't want to because she's been fighting with her sisters, apparently.   
  
Harry hasn't talked much about his new friends (he hopes it's not too soon to call them friends, but it really feels like it). Harry hopes she likes them because it feels like they've been friends for years, and Harry loves it, he loves how natural is the way they all interact. He's sure that Niall feels the same. Actually, Niall hasn't stopped talking about them since they met. Harry can't wait for Mia to meet them, but right now he just wants to end the call because Mia is talking about how annoying her sisters are, and Harry isn't paying much attention to what she says, he just doesn't want to be rude.  
  
He's on the phone for a couple of minutes and then they say goodbye. Harry's about to go back to the table when he sees Louis from where he's standing, and he can't help but smile because Louis is so... _Louis_. He's right there, mouth full of ice cream once again; ice cream that _Niall_ bought him, and that's so funny to Harry. It's amazing. Louis is laughing at whatever Liam's saying, and he looks so small, and... he's doing this _thingy_ with his feet; like, one foot on its side and the other on top of it. Harry has the urge to tease him about it, just to see him frown or pout. But he's not gonna do it, he just shakes his head and goes back to the table.  
  
"You know what we should do?" Niall says when Harry takes his seat again.  
  
"Oh no, here we go," Harry sighs, and Niall laughs.  
  
"We should go for some beers."  
  
"Man, are you serious? We drank like crazy last night," Zayn says.  
  
"I'm up for it," Sylvi says shrugging.   
  
"I know an Irish bar," Niall says wiggling his brows.  
  
"Eew, stop being Irish you two," Louis says giggling.   
  
"It's not like an actual bar, it's more like, I don't know, they serve food, too, but the beer is amazing," Niall says, "Harry, tell them, we've been there together," he adds looking at Harry.  
  
"Yeah, it's cool, yeah," Harry says, "the Irish ice cream is good, too," he adds looking at Louis, "just in case you want more ice cream," he says smirking and pointing at Louis' cup of ice cream.  
  
Louis narrows his eyes and then laughs. Good, Louis is laughing. Harry was a bit worried about him; about what he said a moment ago. Harry wanted to tell Louis that everything will be okay, that he's still young, and it's okay to change his mind about what he wants to do with his life and so many other things, but Louis obviously didn't want to talk about it.  
  
But now Louis is laughing again, he's smiling, crinkly eyes and all, and his mouth is very pink, maybe because of the ice cream. And Harry wants him to say 'yes', he wants them to go to that bar because he wants to spend more time with them. With Louis.  
  
"Oh c'mon Lou, it's too early to go home," Liam says.  
  
"C'mon kids, it's saturday," Sylvi says to Louis and Zayn, because it looks like they would be up for it if the other says 'yes'.  
  
"Please, I promise we're not gonna drink like last night," Niall says.  
  
"Okay, but I'm not gonna drink, like at all" Louis says, mouth full of ice cream, and it should be gross but it's actually funny and... endearing, kind of, Harry thinks. Like that thing he does with his feet.  
  
"Don't say you won't," Zayn says laughing, "I know you'll drink, bro."  
  
"No, I'm serious, I feel like shit. It's been a while since last time I got drunk."  
  
"Since last time you went out with us, more like," Liam says.  
  
"Been busy, man," Louis shrugs.  
  
"Ok, let's go! It's not far, we can walk there and then we can take the subway back home," Niall says clapping his hands excitedly.  
  
"Ugh, Niall, don't make me walk again," Louis whines.  
  
"I'll carry your lazy ass. Let's go." Laim says finally.

  
\---  
They're walking to the bar and Liam was serious; he  _actually_ gave Louis a piggyback ride for like 2 minutes. It's so weird, Harry thinks. But he can almost understand it; it's like everybody wants to do nice things for Louis, even Niall who just met him last night; he bought Louis more ice cream, just to make him smile. And Sylvi, she's sweet in general but she's the sweetest when it comes to Louis. And even Liam; he teases Louis a lot but he really glows when Louis is pleased. And Zayn, well, there's something about Zayn and Louis, like a complicity; Harry could sense that _thing_ as soon as he met them; it's really amazing. He kind of understand it beacause Louis is very... special; being around him makes you want to take care of him. There's something about him that makes Harry want Louis around more, and he hopes it will be like that, he hopes they could be friends and not just casual friends/neighbors who go out together sometimes, he really hopes they could be good friends.  
  
The sun is still on but there's a cool breeze, it's nice, and it looks beautiful, Harry loves the sky like this; kind of orange and pink; so dreamy. And the company is amazing, too.  
  
\---  
"Zayn, can I borrow your sunglasses? My eyes hurt a little, I don't know, with the light, I think," Louis says when they enter the bar.  
  
"Here, bro," Zayn hands him the sunglasses.  
  
And that's what Harry means; Louis is so spoiled, and they probably don't even realize it, they must be so used to it, it's so funny. But yes, the lights are very bright, it feels like it's early in the morning but it's like 7 p.m.   
  
\---  
They laugh, take photos and drink a lot. And yes, Louis is drinking, too, Zayn's been teasing him a lot for that.  
  
"Guys," Sylvi says placing her beer on the table, "my birthday... is next week," she says and then looks at Niall and Harry, "you're more than invited to drink with us again," she says smiling.  
  
"Cheers," Niall says, "of course, I'll be there. You can't get rid of me, guys," he adds and they all laugh.  
  
"Yeah, I'll definitely go, too," Harry says and Sylvi smiles big. "When's your birthday?" He asks.  
  
"Friday, I'm celebrating on... Friday?" She laughs, "we decided Friday was okay, right, love?" She asks Liam.  
  
"Yes, love," Liam says and kisses her cheek.  
  
"Shit, I've got an extra shift," Louis complains.  
  
"Really?" Liam pouts, "what time you're off?"  
  
"Like, eleven or so," Louis whines, "that shit actually closes at one, no shit" he sighs. "Thought you'll celebrate it on Saturday."  
  
"I'll pick you up, bro," Zayn says.  
  
"Yeah, but I wanted to be there to sing Happy Birthday," Louis says softly.  
  
"We're gonna fucking wait for you, what are you talking about?" Liam says like it's obvious.  
  
"Yes, baby, of course," Sylvi says looking at him like he's the most precious thing they have.  
  
"Of course we're gonna wait for you, silly," Liam speaks again, "I would never miss the chance to see you crying when you sing," he teases and they all laugh, specially Zayn, he's losing it.  
  
"Heeey," Louis whines but he can't help it and starts to laugh, too, "Zayn, stop," he pouts, "you promised you'd never laugh at me getting emotional," he pinches Zayn's belly and laughs with him.  
  
\---  
They're debating whether to take the tube or a bus. Louis hates the bus so it's obvious what they're gonna do.   
  
Harry feels pretty tipsy and it looks like the rest are doing just fine. He drank too much, not even Niall looks drunk. He's gonna regret this, he was supposed to finish at least his room tomorrow, fuck that.  
  
\---  
The window behind Louis makes Harry's vision blurry, maybe he's drunk but he's sure this shit goes too fast.  
  
They are seated across each other, and Harry notices Louis' shoelace is untied. Louis' eyes are a bit red, maybe he's sleepy. He's got a dopey smile on his face. And Harry wants to tie his shoelace, it's weird; he wants to do it himself, he doesn't want Louis to move or do anything more than being the smiley little sun he is right now. And maybe Harry's a bit _too_ tipsy. He guesses this is how the rest feel about Louis too, like they don't want Louis to worry about anything at all. Like they want to fix every single problem Louis might have. Like they even want to tie his shoelace for him, too.   
  
Harry decides to look away because that blurry window (or Louis) is making him want to empty his stomach. He looks to his right and he sees Sylvi who's on Liam's lap; they look so good together, Harry thinks. He wonders if people ever think that about him and Mia. At least his mom does.  
  
Louis moves his hand and fishes for something in Zayn's pockets, Zayn doesn't even flinch at the contact. Louis finds what he was looking for. He puts the earbuds on and now he's busy on his phone, and Harry wonders what he's listening to. He remembers yesterday Louis was wearing a t-shirt of The Stone Roses. Maybe that.  
  
Zayn and Niall are seated next to Louis, Zayn in the middle. They're talking about tattoos. Niall's saying he's afraid of tattoos but he really likes them on other people; he's just complimenting Zayn because he's never said nice things about Harry's tattoos, but Zayn's are quite cool, Harry can see some of them on his neck and hands.   
  
And Harry looks at Louis again. He feels drunker than before. Fuck it. He moves towards Louis, he bends and starts tying Louis' shoelace. He takes his time because he feels dizzy. Then he looks up and Louis is looking down at him, frowning. Harry goes back to his seat and when he looks at Louis again he's smiling and mouths 'thank you', Harry just nods.  
  


\---

 **[Louis]**  
What the fuck was _that_? Harry has just tied his shoelace. Why? That's so weird. So random. It was like in slow motion, too. Louis loves drama but it really felt like slow motion, probably beacause Harry's kind of drunk, but it was a moment, like, they shared a moment.   
  
He's listening to 'Perfect Places' by Lorde, and this moment feels unreal, Harry feels unreal. Now he's gonna think about this moment while listening to Lorde, good.   
  
Louis can't even look at him. Maybe he's overreacting. Yes, he is. Harry's just being nice. Louis is making a big deal of it and he should just be thankful that Harry's decent enough to let someone know that their shoelace is untied.   
  
\---  
When they get home Louis goes to bed immediately. Zayn stays in the living room playing video games, as usual. He's probably gonna stay playing until 5 a.m. and sleep til Monday.   
  
Before he falls asleep he check his Instagram. Sylvi tagged him in a photo. Two photos, actually. The first is a photo of him, Zayn and Niall. The other photo is kind of blurry but Louis recognizes Harry and Liam hugging. Harry and Niall are tagged too; _harryeds_ , _horange_. He notices Niall started following him, so Louis follows back. He really likes Niall, and his username is cool. Louis tries not to put much thought into the fact that Harry didn't follow him like Niall. He's very sleepy now so he decides, as creepy as it sounds, that he's gonna check out Harry's instagram tomorrow.   
  
Louis falls asleep thinking about Harry. Harry not following on Instagram, and he feels stupid for caring.  
  
\---  
It's almost 12 and Louis wakes up. He goes to the kitchen, he picks a cereal box and goes right back to bed.   
  
He has to finish grading some essays; that's pretty much all he does as T.A, and he likes it a lot, actually.  
  
So, he eats cereal while he works in bed.  
  
He finishes in an hour and he turns on the TV, and keeps eating cereal. It's a lazy Sunday.  
  
It's 2:30 p.m and Louis is hungry. He's gonna have to wake up Zayn.  
  
The thing is... Louis doesn't cook at all. He knows some recipes but when he has tried them, it always ends up in a mess; he burns the food, he breaks things because he gets nervous, and it never tastes good enough to eat it unless he's very hungry. He literally only knows how to make tea and coffee, and that's mainly because he works at a coffee shop.  
  
"Zaynie," Louis whispers.  
  
Zayn doesn't even move. Louis keeps trying and gives up immediately. Time for plan B. He starts jumping on Zayn's bed.  
  
"The fuck," Zayn mumbles.  
  
"Wake up, Zaynie."  
  
"Stop. Get off."  
  
"No. Wake up. Wake up!" Louis says and keeps jumping. "Zayn! Wake up, plea-"  
  
"Okay, stop! I'm awake, you little shit!" Zayn screams and that shuts Louis up and makes him stop jumping. And Zayn's eyes are, yeah, _quite_ open.  
  
"I'm hungry, Zen. I'm sorry," Louis says softly and pouts.  
  
"Fuck. Don't use that voice, you demon."  
  
Louis just sighs and frowns. "Zap! Zayn gets up and cooks with me. Now."  
  
Zayn sighs dramatically. "I'm gonna shower first, so get out."  
  
"C'mon, I said _Zap!_  It's late," Louis whines. "Let's cook something first," he whispers, "and then you can take a shower... And then you can, I don't know, sleep or play video games till dinner," he sighs, "I can join you, if you want."  
  
"I don't like playing with you. I need a good opponent, it's boring when I keep winning effortlessly."  
  
"I meant join you in the shower but okay." Louis says casually.  
  
Zayn laughs at that and throws him a pillow.  
  
\---   
They finish eating and then go back to Zayn's bed.  
  
"Can I borrow your phone for two seconds, please."  
  
"What for?" Zayn questions.  
  
"Mmm, don't laugh."  
  
"Okay. Tell me."  
  
"I wanna stalk Harry on social media," Louis says grimacing.  
  
"Freak," Zayn snorts, "why can't you use _your_ phone?"  
  
"'Cos I always accidentally like photos when I do that. It's embarrassing."   
  
"Right, so better use _my_ phone and then Harry will think _I'm_ lurking," Zayn says rising his brows.  
  
"Yep," Louis says smiling. "C'mon you don't give a shit, anyway. You don't care what he thinks," he adds when Zayn ignores him.  
  
"Don't be weird, bro. He's just a boy. A _straight_ boy," Zayn says in a serious tone but still sweet.   
  
Louis appreciate it. He's gonna forget about it; Zayn's right. He's quiet now.  
  
"Niall followed me on Instagram," Zayn says after a few seconds, "he's nice."   
  
Louis knows that Zayn's just making conversation. Louis doesn't want to talk. He just nods.

"Bro."  
  
"He followed me, too," says Louis in a sigh.  
  
"Are you mad? Don't pout," Zayn mocks.  
  
"I'm not," Louis frowns. He's not. He just doesn't feel like talking right now.  
  
"Talk to me, then."  
  
"No."  
  
Zayn laughs.  
  
"Okay. Lou, come here."  
  
And Louis does. Zayn hands his phone so Louis can type Harry's username. _harryeds_. Louis remembers it, of course, he hasn't stoped thinking about it.  
  
"Okay I'll scroll down tho," Zayn says amused, Louis rolls his eyes.  
  
There aren't many photos of Harry. So, not a 'selfie guy', Louis thinks. Good.  
  
The photos are very artsy, and Louis remembers Harry and Liam talking about photography yesterday, so maybe he was right assuming Harry's a photographer.  
  
Zayn keeps scrolling and then stops. And Louis' stomach twists, at least it feels like it. And Louis feels stupid, he feels like a loser.   
  
Zayn locks his phone and looks at Louis.  
  
"You okay?"  
  
"Yeah, I mean." Louis doesn't know what to say. "I already knew so. Like." He sighs, he really doesn't know what to say. How to feel. It's all so stupid. He shouldn't feel like this about a person he barely knows. But he can't help it. Harry's straight. Harry has a girlfriend. She's beautiful. They look good together, and happy. They were smiling so big. And it was probably and _objectively_ the best photo on Harry's Instagram, the rest were too professional.   
  
Louis has to stop thinking about it.   
  
"Don't be sad, please."  
  
"I'm not," Louis says with his best fake smile.   
  
"Okay. 'M gonna shower now," Zayn pinches Louis' belly. Louis smiles and nods.  
  
He gets up and goes to his bedroom. He grabs his laptop and goes back to Zayn's bed.  
Louis decides he's not gonna be dramatic about this.  
  
And here he is listening to Lorde, thinking about Harry as predicted last night.   
  
'Green Light' is playing low while he logs in Tumblr.  
  
He needs to do something to distract his mind. So, he's gonna upload some details of Gustav Klimt's paintings. His blog is mainly an art blog, because he's an art geek, as Zayn calls him. And Zayn is an artist himself but he doesn't care about Art History and such. He's just a creative soul, here and now. Louis, on the other hand, needs to know everything, he craves information to understand what went through those artist's minds. He really wants to see things as they were because he feels vulnerable when he interprets things. He thinks he gives out too much about himself. It makes him anxious, and his blog keeps him sane.  
  
Louis recently read a book about Klimt. Not for school, tho. He's actually very organized. After all, he's double majoring so he has to be organized and efficient. He does most of his homework at uni between free periods, or he stays after class to do his readings at the library the days he doesn't work. His part time job is a pain in the ass and it's getting out of control, he only works three days a week but it feels like he doesn't even sleep during the week. That's why he barely goes out with his friends and he spends weekends at home. Actually, the last two days he's felt out of his body. He's not used to it anymore. He's not gonna lie; he actually needed it. He needed a night out, he wanted to drink and relax, but he has to put limits now before he loses control. He hates to admit it but that's how it is.   
  
Anyway, the book he read was brilliant. And now he's obsessed with Kilmt's muse, Adele Bloch-Bauer. Louis thinks Gustav stole her soul. He trapped her in those paintings. Louis knows it sounds crazy, but there's something in her eyes, she looks so sad, so miserable. And even with all the gold and vibrant colors around her, she still looks lethargic. He's doing it again; he's vulnerable. He hates it. And he's so sad about this lady. That's why he decided to post about her. He cropped the photos isolating her face from all that gold. So he can only see her features; her eyes.   
  
Zayn comes out of the shower and Louis tells him about Adele and her soul while Lorde offers a soundtrack for his story. Zayn says he loves Louis' edit. He calls him art geek, as usual, but he understands. He doesn't laugh. Zayn always understands.   
  
Louis is not thinking about Harry now.  
  
\---

 **[Harry]**  
It's Monday and Harry's about to leave his apartment when Niall calls him from the couch and asks him for breakfast on his way back.  
  
"Okay. Or maybe come with me?"   
  
"Don't be ridiculous, Styles," Niall says and groans.  
  
Harry just shakes his head and leaves.  
  
He goes for a run everyday at 7 a.m. He also goes to the gym like 2 times a week; he really loves exercising and he tries to eat healthy too. Harry also loves that he has time to do it since he works from home. He's an editor, so he basically gets paid for reading, at least that's how he sees it. Harry loves his job and he knows he's very lucky in that aspect. He graduated last year and he got a job immediately thanks to his mother who works for a very prestigious magazine and she knows the right people. Also, Harry's father is a writter (currently teaching). So yeah, it was easy. Harry's also a photographer but it's more like a hobby to him, he really loves photography but is definitely just a hobby.   
  
\---  
Harry checks his watch when he comes out of the bakery that's around the corner; he bought donuts and coffee for Niall. 8:15, good timing, he ran for like an hour as expected.  
  
He sees Louis and Zayn coming out of the elevator when he's about to go up.  
  
"Hey," he says.  
  
"Harry," Zayn nods.  
  
"Good morning," Harry tells them.  
  
"Morning," Louis says softly, almost like a whisper. He sounds sleepy and his voice is kind of raspy.   
  
"Have a nice day," Harry tells them and enters the elevator.  
  
"Thanks, man," Zayn says, and they go.

  
\---  
Niall's awake, which is surprising. He's wearing pijamas but he's unpacking Harry's books. And yes, Niall's very lazy but he's been helping him a lot, so Harry's grateful.  
  
"Hey, you forgot you're phone. Or you left it on purpose to wake me up; Mia called like a hundred times," Niall says.  
  
"Uh, sorry, man. I brought you breakfast."  
  
"No problem, mate," Niall says sweetly, "let's eat, then."  
  
Harry actually left his phone for that reason, but he forgot to turn it off. Mia has been calling him too much, it's actually driving him crazy.  
  
They eat and then Harry goes to shower. He's gonna call Mia after his shower. Maybe later, who knows. He just doesn't want to deal with it now.

  
\---

 **[Zayn]**  
"Zayn,  _fuck_... He's hot."  
  
"Nah, man, you're just gay. He's average looking. Don't impress me," Zayn shrugs.   
  
"No, Zayn, he  _is._ "  
  
Zayn just laughs and shakes his head.   
  
"And,  _fuck_ , he was all sweaty... And his arms. Fuck. Me." Louis says fastening the seatbelt.   
  
"He's got some tattoos, that's cool," Zayn says, very uninterested.  
  
"Yeah,  _fuck_... I'm so hard, no shit."  
  
"Shut up! For fuck's sake, don't say that," Zayn hits him on the arm, and they laugh.  
  
"I don't give a shit, bro. It's my gay right to thirst over straight boys," Louis jokes. "And if Harry's gonna be all sweaty and sexy around me, I'm just gonna enjoy it."  
  
Zayn knows Louis is just acting like he doesn't care about Harry anymore, but he can tell that he's a bit hurt. It seams like Louis really likes this dude. Zayn knows Louis so damn well. And he worries about him. All the time.   
  
"He's a freak, man," Zayn says after a moment, "like, he exercises and shit. In the morning, that's even worse. I don't trust him, that's fucked up" he jokes and Louis laughs.  
  
"Yeah, that's some shit," Louis says nodding.  
  
"Like, who even does that?"   
  
"Liam."  
  
They laugh.

"That's why they got along so quickly; they're both gym dudes with frat boy complex, I bet." Zayn says.   
  
Louis laughs, he even tilts his head back and covers his mouth. They always make fun of Liam and his obsessive training.  
  
"Dont be mean," Louis says and keeps laughing, "I don't think Harry's got a frat boy complex. Judging by his Instagram, he's more like a free spirit bohemian kind of guy, I don't know," he shurgs.  
  
"A hipster."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Pretentious," Zayn points out.  
  
"Yeah, a bit."  
  
"Okay. Shut up now, I'm sick of Harry."   
  
Louis rolls his eyes.  
  
"Zap, Louis stops talking about Harry," Zayn says.  
  
Louis smiles, shakes his head and doesn't mention Harry again.  
  
Zayn focuses on the next traffic light. He gets distracted very easily when he drives in the morning. And he doesn't even  _have_  to drive everyday, he does it for Louis. He just can't let Louis go to uni by bus because Louis hates public transport, and public situations in general; he gets anxious alone in crowded places. When he's with friends it's all good, but when he's by himself he just can't function and gets frustated.  
  
Zayn could stay at home and sleep until noon everyday, but he loves Louis too much. Besides, he gets back to bed anyway.

  
\---  
Zayn is back from the store, he bought dinner for Louis because he won't be home later. It's 4:40 now, his date is at 7:30.   
  
He sees Niall outside the building, on the phone.

Niall, as the talkative person he is, tells Zayn about his day. He was on the phone with Harry. He was supposed to help Harry today, they're almost done with the apartment, but Harry had to pick up his girlfriend at the airport. Apparently Harry said no at first, but his girlfriend, Mia, made a big deal of it. And Niall thinks she's just insecure about the relationship. He also said that she was not very happy about Harry moving and she probably thought that he would ask her to move in. Then Niall realized he was sharing too much information about Harry and his relationship, Zayn said that he wouldn't say a word so no need to worry. But actually he just doesn't give a shit.  
  
Anyway, now Niall's about to leave because he doesn't have a key.   
  
Zayn invites Niall to play FIFA while he waits for Harry. Niall says yes immediately. It's a good idea, Zayn thinks. This guy is nice. Besides, now he's got something to do until his date.  
  
\---  
They play for like two hours. Zayn wins. And then he tells Niall about his job. It's like a secret and only a few people know about it. Louis was the first one, obviously. Actually, Louis gave him the idea. Niall is very excited about this. He says he was waiting for Zayn to tell him but he never thought it would be so soon.   
  
Zayn tells him and Niall loves it. He says that now he understands why Zayn's so good at FIFA, and Zayn tells him that he's actually good at any game, and he's right.  
  
He needs to get ready for his date, now.   
  
Niall informes that Harry will be here soon. And apparently he had a fight with his girlfriend and had to take her to her parents house. Again, Niall is sharing too much, maybe it's not a good idea to tell him things. Whatever. It's a big mess that Zayn doesn't understand, and doesn't really care.  
  
Zayn tells Niall to come again tomorrow.   
  
It was fun. Niall is cool.  
  
\---

 **[Harry]**  
Mia and Harry decided they are not gonna fight again. He drove her home and told her they'd talk about it later. She thanked Harry for picking her up, and she apologized for the way she acted. Harry said it's all good and invited her to Sylvi's party.   
  
Mia said she would go, but she also said she didn't want to wait untill Friday to see him, so Harry told her they could go on a date on Wednesday, like old times. Mia agreed and told him she would call later so Harry could tell her more about his new friends. That made Harry smile because he's very excited about his new friends.   
  
Then he kissed her goodbye and went back home.  
  
\---  
He gets home and has dinner with Niall. Then they go out. The first opition was a bar but Niall convinced him to just go for a coffee. They talk about Sylvi's birthday and they try to think about a good gift for her. Niall suggests they should ask Zayn or Louis.  
  
Then Harry talks about him and Mia, Niall listens. It's all Harry needs. He doesn't want advice or anything, he just wants to get it out of his chest.   
  
\---  
Niall had to go earlier so Harry goes home too. He showers and then goes to bed. He feels tired but not sleepy.   
  
He grabs his phone to busy himself, and he notices that Liam added him and Niall to a group chat. He smiles. He gave Liam his number the first night they met and they've been texing about Harry's new gym. He had to find a new one because his old gym is too far away now and it's not convenient. Liam recommended his. Now they'll be gym buddies.   
  
The name of the group chat is 'ZAPPERS', and the icon is a photo of Zayn and Louis. It must be an inside joke or something. He'll ask Liam tomorrow.  
  
He's sleepy now. His day was shit but now he's happy.  
  
\---   
Tuesday. He encounters Zayn and Louis again at the same time in the morning, 8:15, but this time Zayn and Louis are at their door and Harry is getting in. He says 'hello' to both and wishes them a good day. Louis is wearing a big hoodie; he looks smaller on big clothes. He looks very sleepy.   
  
\---  
Next day same thing, same time. He sees when Louis and Zayn get in the car and waves at them.  
He kind of misses them. But they're all gonna hang out this weekend. Good. And today is gym day, so he's gonna spend some time with Liam. And then, after gym, he'll see a movie with Mia, and hopefully try to fix whatever is going on between them.  
  
\---  
Harry checks the group chat. He hasn't interacted much, so now he's checking out the chat while he waits for Liam outside the gym.   
  
Apparently, Zayn went on a date on Monday and Liam asked him about it, then Louis told Liam to mind his business and Liam started teasing Louis untill Louis got proper mad and left the group chat. Zayn added him again immediately. Harry knows they were joking. They've been texting about Sylvi's birthday too, She asked what kind of drinks they prefer; Niall said that him and Harry drink literally anything, so no need to worry about them. Sylvi also said they could bring friends if they wanted. Good, Harry thinks, because he already invited Mia.  
  
Right now, Niall and Zayn are together, apparently. Zayn's texting about how many times Niall's lose at FIFA.   
  
Harry knows that Niall hang out with Zayn yesterday and on Monday, too. So he guesses it's a thing now; them and FIFA. It's really cool, he thinks. Just like him and Liam and gym.  
  
\---  
He asks Liam about the group chat; about the name and the photo of Louis and Zayn. Liam says it's a  _thing_  that Louis and Zayn made up when they were kids. They would say "Zap!" and make a wish, kind of, like ask for something they wanted to happen. So, that was like their magic word or something. Like their super power.  
  
Liam says that him and Sylvi know about it because Zayn's mom told them when they met her, and since then they've been teasing Louis and Zayn about it. But the thing is; they don't really mind all the jokes because they still think it's cool and they're quite proud of it, they would literally obey each other when they use that word. And... Yeah, it  _is_  cool, Harry thinks.   
  
And, about the photo; they keep changing the icon because they claim they're the only  _Zappers_ , so everytime Liam or Sylvi change it to a photo of the four of them, Louis changes it back to the photo of him and Zayn.   
  
\---  
Mia didn't like the movie Harry chose so, naturally, she was in a bad mood.   
  
Harry thinks that maybe Niall is right. He's been telling Harry that maybe Mia wanted to move in with him and that's why she's acting weird. Could be that. But there's nothing he can or want to do about it. He wants to live alone, he's 24, he doesn't feel ready to live with her. It's a big step and he's not ready.  
  
\---

 **[Zayn]**  
"Babes, I can't drive you tomorrow. I've got a job interview. I have to leave like at 6 to be in time for it." Zayn says at soon as Louis enters the apartment.  
  
"Finally getting a  _real_  job."  
  
Zayn laughs. "I'm not quitting my current  _very_  real job, tho."  
  
"You should, loser," Louis teases.  
  
"I'm making money, baby. Lots of money, no way I'll quit."  
  
"Smart guy." Louis sighs, "so what's this interview about?"  
  
Zayn hums, "don't wanna jinx it, bro. So I'll tell you... when they call me again to say yes or no, kay? I'm nervous as shit."  
  
"Okay. You'll be great and I'm proud of you no matter what," Louis says sweetly.  
  
"Thank you," Zayn smiles. "You hungry?"  
  
Louis hums, "a bit, yeah."  
  
"Okay, I made mac and cheese."  
  
Louis nods and starts walking towards his bedroom.  
  
"Hey," Zayn stops him. "Maybe Liam can drive you."  
  
"I'll be okay, Zen. Don't worry," Louis smiles sincerely.  
  
\---  
"Did you see the photo Liam sent to the group chat?" Zayn says while they eat.  
  
"Yeah,  _fuck_. I almost pass the fuck out."  
  
"You're so dramatic," Zayn shakes his head.  
  
"But, like. They were totally showing off. Like, why would they send a picture shirtless?" Louis snorts.  
  
"Yeah, fucking losers," Zayn jokes.  
  
"I'm grateful, tho," Louis says mouth full.  
  
"'Course you are."  
  
"Harry's got some sick tattoos," Louis comments.  
  
"Yeah. Don't talk about him, tho. We're eating, have some respect," Zayn acts serious.  
  
"Don't be mean."  
  
"I just... Still think he's an asshole," Zayn shrugs.   
  
"Just say you're jealous 'cos I find him hot."  
  
Zayn laughs loudly, "you caught me, bro."  
  
\---

 **[Harry]**  
7:06 a.m. Harry's outside of his apartment tying his shoelace when he hears a door close and he sees Louis. He looks sleepy. Harry stands up and now he's facing Louis.  
  
"Harry," Louis greets him and nods.   
  
" _Lewis_ ," Harry nods too, and emphasizes the S.   
  
"Heeey, don't call me that," Louis complains and frowns.  
  
Louis is [wearing](https://78.media.tumblr.com/b49535a58302c19c3ca1cd814ce6ec0c/tumblr_oivsbw3R981tmwej8o1_500.png) a black beanie with a white checkered pattern, a black hoodie, grey joggers and black Vans. Louis' bag makes Harry shake his head and smile; it's a Vans Marvel Comics backpack, and it matches Louis' phone case. He's a bit of a nerd, then.  
  
"I'm just messing with you," Harry smiles. "How are you?"  
  
"Sleepy." Louis says, he sounds small.  
  
Zayn's not with him today. Harry wonders why. But he also wonders what exactly does Zayn. It seams like he's always at home playing FIFA. But he sees him with Louis every morning. And. Wait.  
  
"You're earlier today."  
  
"Mmm?" Louis blinks.  
  
"I usually see you when I'm back from running. Like at eight," Harry explains.  
  
"Oh. Yeah," Louis rubs his eyes. "Zayn couldn't drive me today 'cos he had something to do."  
  
Harry frowns and his smile stars growing. He tries not to laugh and bites his lip. Is this what he thinks it is? "Does he-" Harry shakes his head and grins.  
  
"What?" Louis looks confused. He's blinking fast. Maybe beacause he's sleepy.  
  
"He goes to uni too, right?" Harry asks. But he's sure his assumption is correct.  
  
"No." Louis pauses. "He just drives me there... And sometimes he picks me up."  
  
There you go. Harry was right. He's laughing now.  
  
"What?" Louis looks like he's trying not to pout.  
  
"Nothing, man," Harry calms down. "It's just, I don't know. It's funny," Harry runs his hand trough his hair. "So he gets up early in the morning just to take you to uni?" He shakes his head, still smiling.  
  
"What about it?" Louis sounds a bit defensive.  
  
"You're so... Spoiled." Harry says and bites his lip.  
  
"I'm not."  
  
"You are!"  
  
Louis sighs. "I just... I hate taking the bus," he says. He keeps rubbing his eyes. "And Zayn's the best friend ever. Like, he really is that good." Louis says raising his brows.  
  
"He is," Harry agrees, but is sounds like he's mocking.  
  
Louis rolls his eyes.  
  
"You're still  _too_  early, tho," Harry speaks again.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I get nervous and sometimes..." Louis sounds hesitant, "I mean. I prefer taking the bus earlier. I don't know. Less people," he shurgs. "Have to go now," he finishes.  
  
"I can drive you. If you want," Harry offers.  
  
"You don't have to," Louis answers immediately.  
  
Harry understands why Zayn does it. Louis looks tense and nervous. Harry doesn't want him to go and take the bus like this.  
  
"It's no problem, c'mon."   
  
"No, Harry. Don't worry." Louis says, and shakes his head. "You... go to run, or whatever."  
  
"C'mon. Listen. I'm always back from running when you're leaving... So I'll go and then I'll drive you," Harry offers.  
  
Louis looks like he wants to say yes.  
  
"C'mon, Louis," Harry tries again.  
  
"Okay," Louis sighs. "Yeah, okay. Thank you. I haven't had breakfast, actually. So, yeah. Thank you."  
  
"No problem, man. Go and eat something. I'll pick you up later."  
  
"Okay." Louis smiles.  
  
\---

 **[Louis]**  
He enters his apartment and calls Zayn immediately. Zayn doesn't answer so Louis decides to text him instead.  
  
_You're not allowed to hate Harry. He's an angel !!  
_  
He's so calm now. Thank fuck. He really hates the bus.   
  
Louis takes his shoes off and goes to the kitchen. He normally eats cereal but today he feels like eating toasts.  
  
He eats and then goes to lie in bed for a bit.  
  
He thinks about Harry. He shouldn't make a big deal of it but Zayn isn't here to stop him.   
  
He's very nervous, but not the anxious nervous type. He usually gets nervous around people when he's getting to know them. It was the same with Liam and Sylvi. He's definitely not an introvert because as soon as he feels comfortable the awkward nervous face disappears.  
  
Harry makes him feel safe, so he's not uncomfortable. It's just that he likes him too much and he doesn't know how to deal with it. He always have crushes on straight guys, but with Harry is different. Louis just wants to be around Harry all the time. He wants his attention so bad. But he also hates being around Harry because he doesn't know what to do.  
  
\---  
_**Harry:**_ _hey i'm back :) come down  
_  
_**Harry:**_ _it's Harry btw  
_  
Of course Louis knows it's Harry. He already saved Harry's number. He did it as soon as Liam added him to the group chat. He wonders if Harry did the same.   
  
_**Louis** _ _: Give me a minute  
_  
_**Harry** _ _: sure  
_  
He goes to brush his teeth quickly and then grabs his stuff.  
  
"Thanks again," he says as soon as he gets into the car.  
  
"No problem."  
  
Harry's car smells good.   
  
"Nice," Harry says pointing at Louis' backpack.  
  
"Thanks," Louis smiles. "Liam gave it to me, and this phone case," he says showing it.  
  
Harry smiles, "so spoiled," he shakes his head, "your friends spoil you too much," he jokes.  
  
"They're just good friends," Louis says fixing his beanie.  
  
"They are," Harry agrees.  
  
\---  
They drive in silence listening to music. Harry has good taste but Louis doesn't recognise any song. He likes the last one they listen to, so he asks Harry the name before he goes.  
  
"The Suburbs by Arcade Fire," Harry says. "Have a nice day," he adds.  
  
"Thank you."  
  
\---  
Zayn texts him back later.  
  
_**Zayn**_ _: i dont hate him dumbass  
_  
_**Louis**_ _: You talk shit about him  
_  
_**Zayn**_ _: whatevs. why is he an angel?  
_  
_**Louis:**_ _He was my_ chauffeur _today  
_  
**_Zayn_** _: really?  
_  
_**Louis**_ _: Yep. He offered ♡♡♡♡  
_  
_**Zayn:**_ _cool  
_  
_**Louis**_ _: Don't say just cool :(  
_  
_**Zayn**_ _: what do u want me to say?  
_  
_**Louis:**_ _I don't know. Maybe "Hey, that's great news! I'm sure this means he wants to marry you"  
_  
_**Zayn**_ _: omg ur so silly i love u  
_  
_**Louis**_ _: I know ♡  
_  
_**Zayn**_ _: ok babe listen im not gonna lie, it's not a big deal, he's just being nice  
_  
_**Louis**_ _: I KNOW!  You don't have to tell me  
_  
_**Zayn**_ _: yes i have to. all the time  
_  
**_Louis_** _: I'm rolling my eyes so hard right now  
_  
_**Zayn**_ _: brat  
_  
_**Louis**_ _: I'll text you later. Class just started  
_  
_**Zayn:**_ _ok_

  
Before turning off his phone he receives another message. From Harry. Louis heart does a thing. Two messages.

  
**_Harry:_ ** _[<https://open.spotify.com/track/2UWdUez9MB9yzL7Y81Mcip?si=1dfjHli8S-yvQ7nW4aNcAQ>]  
_  
_**Harry** _ _: that's the song :)_

  
Louis can't help his smile.  
  
\---

 **[Harry]**  
He finally finishes unpacking and cleaning. He feels free now. He's done with the apartment; he's officially moved in. Niall helped him again today and now he's taking pictures and sending them to the group chat.  
  
**_Sylvi:_ ** _Beautiful! I love it  
_  
_**Niall:** _ _next week we're celebrating! that's for sure  
_  
_**Liam:** _ _haha you should ask Harry first don't ya think?  
_  
_**Niall** _ _: he's gunna say yes :p  
_  
_**Harry:** _ _definitely mate_

  
Niall goes to Harry's [bedroom](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/c4/da/c1/c4dac19d54f2cacad6a8ac1cc9590d9d--neon-lights-in-bedroom-neon-bedroom.jpg) now to take photos. That's Harry's favorite place. He decorated with neon lights; blue and pink, and a bit of orange on the floor. It all looks kind of purple. Those are the only lighs in the room so he won't work from bed as he was used to. He decided his bedroom was going to be his place to relax. His bed is by one of the windows and there's a big mirror in front of it, the mirror is framed with bright blue neon lights too.

  
**_Sylvi:_ ** _I love the mirror  
_  
_**Liam** _ _: it's massive!  
_  
_**Louis** _ _: The lights are sick  
_  
_**Zayn:** _ _yea i like the lights too. v cool  
_  
_**Harry** _ _: thanks guys_

  
_\---_  
Harry and Niall's small celebration is getting high as shit. They're lying on Harry's bed and the lights are getting them higher.  
  
"We should have invited the rest," Niall comments.  
  
"Yeah, but there's not enough weed."  
  
"I miss them."  
  
Harry laughs. It's not funny but he laughs. They're listening to Tame Impala. Harry's not sure what song is playing, they sound all the same now. He's high.  
  
"They're so cool, man," Niall speaks again. "I have the biggest... crush on them."  
  
Harry laughs.  
  
"Did you know-"   
  
"What?" Niall questions.  
  
"Mmm?"  
  
"Did I know what?"  
  
"Oh."   
  
"You're so slow now," Niall laughs.  
  
"Did you know that Zayn is Louis' personal driver?" Harry says amused.   
  
Niall laughs loudly, "yeah, Zayn told me. He'd die for Louis, I'm telling ya, man."  
  
Harry hums, "Louis is... easy to like."  
  
"Yeah, he's something else," Niall agrees, "and his hair is cool."  
  
"It is, yeah," Harry smiles feeling incredibly high. He can't even open his eyes because the lighs are making him dizzy.  
  
"I like the way he blinks," Harry says after a moment.  
  
"What? Who?"  
  
"I like the way Louis blinks."  
  
Niall giggles, "you mean his eyes?"  
  
"No." Harry pauses. "I mean, yeah. But I like how he blinks. His eyelashes are... cool."  
  
"Oh." Niall sounds sleepy. "He's cool. I like Louis, he's funny."  
  
"Yeah, man. He's-"  
  
"He's what?" Niall says like 2 minutes later.  
  
"Like. My _soul_ is attracted to his soul, y'know what I mean," Harry says but it sounds different in his head.  
  
Niall just laughs. "No, man. I don't know what you mean."  
  
"Me neither," Harry chuckles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it took me like 2 weeks to update :(


	3. Chapter 3

[Harry]  
It's Friday. Harry goes to run, as usual. When he's back, he sees Louis and Zayn outside the building. 8:07 AM. They're smoking. Sharing a cigarette.  
  
\---  
He goes to shower and then he remembers last night with Niall. He thinks about it for a minute. He was high, he decides. Whatever.  
  
Then he remembers today is Sylvi's birthday. He checks the group chat and he sees that Louis was the first one who sent her a birthday message.  
  
_**Louis** : Sylvi !! Happy birthday, beautiful !! Love you lots. You're so old now !!_  
  
_**Sylvi** : thanks babe! But 24 is not old :( fuck off_  
  
_**Louis** : Zayn agrees, you're old_  
  
_**Zayn** : yes u are. happy bday btw _  
  
_**Sylvi** : thanks assholes_  
  
_**Niall** : HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIRL!! im 24 too wtf :( we're not old_  
  
_**Sylvi** : thank you Niall !!! _  
  
_**Louis** : Stop being Irish in public_  
  
_**Zayn** : hajhsjakak _

**_Sylvi_ ** _: what is that supposed to mean?_

 _ **Louis** : I can HEAR your accents._  
  
_**Liam** : zayn and louis are still babies, let's ignore them we're all 24 here_  
  
_**Louis** : Okay, don't talk to me, oldie_  
  
_**Zayn** : we dont give a shit liam, we're too cool for u anyway_  
  
Harry laughs while he reads and then finally sends his message.  
  
_**Harry** : happy birthday Sylvi!!! see you tonight_  
  
_**Sylvi** : thank you, fave neighbor! ♡_  
  
_**Zayn** : wow thats low sylvzzz_  
  
_**Sylvi** : Harry, we're ignoring Z*yn and L*uis, don't talk to them_  
  
_**Louis** : Are you sure you're 24?_  
  
_**Sylvi** : see ya tonight Harry :)_  
  
_**Zayn** : lou is gunna leave the group. wait for it haha_  
  
_**Liam** : see, he's a baby_  
  
_**Louis** : I'm not. I won't leave._  
  
_**Liam** : we're gonna ignore you two anyways haha_  
  
_**Louis** : You're already interacting with us, idiot_  
  
_**Zayn** : dumbass_  
  
\---  
[Zayn]  
He checks his phone; it's 20:26. Zayn is outside Zoey's house. He's picking her up to go to Sylvi's party.  
  
"Hey," Zoey kisses his cheek, "are we late?"  
  
"No, it's perfect. We have time, don't worry."  
  
"Oh, okay," she smiles. "You look good."  
  
"Always," Zayn jokes.  
  
"Obviously."  
  
"You look good too," he says sweetly.  
  
\---  
The party is good and there's a lot to drink and eat. There are a lot of people. Zayn doesn't know how that's even posible because the apparent isn't big. There are a lot of people Zayn has never seen before.  
  
Harry's with his girlfriend; Mia. She's nice and polite. They look good together, Zayn thinks. He hopes Louis won't mind. Of course he will, Zayn knows.  
  
He's having a good time with Zoey and Niall. They got along immediately. It's not surprising because Niall's been socializing with everyone here.  
  
Then, Niall has the best or worst idea ever. He wants to start a drinking competition. Zoey is encouraging them. Niall says he can at least win this since he sucks at FIFA and he'll never beat Zayn.  
  
"C'mon Zayn," Niall pleads, but it sounds challenging at the same time.  
  
"No, man. I can't."  
  
"You're a chicken, I can't believe this!"  
  
"Who's a chicken?" Harry sits with them. His girlfriend by his side.  
  
"Zayn," Zoey answers, "he won't compete against Niall because he's a chicken."  
  
Zayn just snorts and shakes his head.  
  
"What kind of competition?" Harry asks.  
  
"A drinking competition, mate, what else," Niall says.  
  
"Last time you lost, remember?" Harry points out.  
  
"Right. Sylvi kicked your ass," Zayn laughs. The rest laugh too.  
  
"C'mon Zayner," Niall insists. That's a nickname Niall gave him. Zayn really likes it. He gave him one too: Nialler.  
  
"I can't, mate. I have to go and pick Louis up in like ten minutes," he says checking his phone.  
  
"I can go," Harry offers.  
  
Okay, Louis was right. Harry is very nice. He's always offering help. Even with a stupid thing like this. He's also encouraging Niall's stupid behavior somehow.  
But Zayn is seriously considering Harry's offer. He doesn't want to drive right now. He doesn't want to leave Zoey alone while he goes, either.  
  
"Okay, Harry's gonna pick Louis up then," Niall says.  
  
Zayn looks at Harry, he hesitates, "you sure?"  
  
"Yeah, no problem."  
  
"Have you been drinking?" Zayn asks, of course. He's not gonna let Harry go if he has drank.  
  
Harry shakes his head, "no, man, at all."  
  
"Let's bring the drinks then!" Zoey cheers.  
  
"Should I go now?" Harry asks.  
  
Zayn checks his phone again, "yeah, I'm gonna text you the address."  
  
"Okay," Harry says, then turns to his girlfriend, "you coming with me?"  
  
She shakes her head, and frowns, "no, babe, I'm gonna stay." She smiles.  
  
\---  
[Louis]  
It's been a long fucking day and Louis is very tired. And he's not very excited about Sylvi's party, for a lot of reasons, but mainly because he wants to go to bed.  
He hasn't checked his phone all day.  
  
_**Zayn** : hey lou, harry's gonna pick u up is that ok?_  
  
That message want sent 20 minutes ago.  
  
_**Zayn** : he's on his way_  
  
Now.  
  
What the hell. Louis wants to know why Zayn couldn't pick him up but more importantly why Harry. He can't deal with this now that he's tired. What are they gonna talk about. Fuck. He feels stupid thinking about that. Who cares. It's just small talk, he can do it.  
  
\---  
When Harry parks outside the coffee shop, Louis feels like the world is stopping, and why does he have to be so dramatic? Ugh. But it really feels like the world's stopping.  
  
He gets in the car.  
  
Harry looks just beautiful; all dressed up. Louis is probably used to see him all sweaty every morning, and he's grateful for that, but now Harry looks stunning. Louis can't even look at him directly when he thanks him for picking him up. Harry shrugs and smiles like it's nothing.  
  
Out of all the straight crushes he's ever had, Harry's definitely the worst, Louis thinks.  
  
Harry tells him about Niall and Zayn; they made a drinking bet, the assholes.  
  
Then they drive in silence, and it's not awkward, Harry's music is enough.  
  
\---  
"I'm gonna eh- I'm gonna change," Louis says, awkwardly pointing at himself and then at his door when they're outside Liam's apartment.  
  
Harry nods and smiles, "sure, mate."  
  
"Yeah," Louis swallows, "thanks again."  
  
"No problem, Lewis."  
  
Louis rolls his eyes and snorts. It's not even funny, he thinks. "See you in a bit," he says finally.  
  
\---  
[Harry]  
Liam asks for Louis and Harry tells him he went to change. He'll be here in a minute, he says.  
  
"Louis? In a minute?" Liam laughs, "he's probably gonna be here in like an hour," he jokes.  
  
Liam tells Harry that Mia seams to be having a good time with Zayn, Zoey and Niall.  
  
Suddenly Zayn interrupts them, "what the fuck is he doing here?" He says to Liam pointing at the door.  
  
There is Sylvi greeting a man.  
  
"Zayn, c'mon, he's her step brother," Liam answers and sighs.  
  
"No. He's... the son of her mother's boyfriend." Zayn sounds drunk.  
  
"That's literally the definition of step brother, idiot," Liam says and grabs a beer.  
  
"Whatever, man, you know what I mean; they're not... blood relatives," Zayn hisses. "Sylvi doesn't even like him, what the fuck, man."  
  
"Listen, her mom told her to invite him. He knew about the party," Liam shurgs. "And Sylvi _does_ like him, they are... family, after all."  
  
"She talks shit behind his back all the time, dude!"  
  
"That's not true."  
  
"Yes, it is," Zayn says firmly, "with Louis. Sylvi and Louis talk shit about him all the fucking time," Zayn says rolling his eyes.  
  
Liam looks exasperated.  
  
"What about him?" Harry asks.  
  
"He's Louis' ex," Liam answers.  
  
"Ex... boyfriend?" Harry asks, frowning.  
  
"Yep," Liam answers.  
  
Zayn is staring at him. Harry doesn't know what his expression looks like, but it's definitely one that makes Zayn react.  
  
"Do you have a problem with that?" Zayn asks, defensive.  
  
"No." Harry says immediately. "Of course. No problem, mate," he's being honest, he does not have a problem at all. But he still sounds hesitant, he doesn't know why. And judging by Zayn's expression, he doesn't believe what he's saying.  
  
"You didn't know Louis is gay?" Liam asks amused. Zayn still looks annoyed. He's glaring at Liam now.  
  
"No I-" Harry clears his throat, "I didn't know," then he looks at Zayn again, "but I'm okay with it. I really am, Zayn."  
  
"You better," Zayn says fiercely.  
  
"Zayn, could you chill for like two seconds," says Liam. He sips his beer and smiles at Zayn. "You look sexy like this, but we all prefer sweet Zayn," he jokes.  
  
"Fuck off." Zayn leaves.  
  
Liam is talking but Harry's not listening. His head feels heavy. He doesn't know what's going on. He doesn't have a problem with Louis being gay. It's just. He never thought about it. Why would he?  
  
Liam asked him something and it looks like he's waiting for an answer.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Are you okay, mate?" Liam asks instead of repeating the question.  
  
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm- yeah. Sorry, mate."  
  
"Okay," Liam pauses, he smiles, "don't drink too much," he suggests, pointing at Harry's drink.  
  
"Yeah. No, I'm okay," Harry manages a smile. "It's the first of the night, actually."  
  
"Kay, buddy," Liam says and pats his back. "I'm gonna say 'hi' to the asshole," he jokes and points at they guy. At Louis' ex-boyfriend.  
  
Harry goes to the bathroom. He's feeling weird. He can't explain what's going on inside his head right now. He just never thought about it. He never assumed anything... He's never even imagined Louis with anybody, actually. Not even a girl, he realizes now.  
He's shocked about the fact that Louis is gay. Not in a homophobic way, though. But he also realizes, now, that Louis with a girl wasn't an option either, in Harry's head. He just can't process that. And he doesn't understand why.  
  
Harry's panicking now. And he feels horrible because he doesn't know how to explain why he's feeling like this. He wants to talk to someone. He wants to talk to Niall. But he just _can't_. He knows that whatever comes out of his mouth, regarding Louis being gay, is gonna sound homophobic, because there isn't a way to explain what he feels.  
  
It's just.  
  
He just thinks about Louis a lot. He wants Louis around all the time. He thinks about him in a... platonic way? Maybe. And that was okay. But now.  
  
It's so weird, he thinks.  
  
He feels like an asshole.  
  
He can't stop thinking about the _way_ he thinks about Louis.  
  
He can't stop thinking. He hears the music from the other room and nothing makes sense.  
  
Harry feels like he might cry now. And all he can think about is the way Louis blinks. Just that. He can't describe it logically. It's something just so... fascinating. And it's messing with his head right now.  
  
The thing is. Now, knowing Louis is gay changes things. In a way.  
  
Harry feels like he's not... _allowed_ to think about Louis in this 'platonic way', or whatever, without anticipating a possibility. That's it. Now a _possibility_ can be contemplated.  
  
He has to go now.  
  
He's gonna take Mia to his apartment. He's gonna stop thinking about this.  
  
He goes back to the kitchen and grabs a beer. Mia is with Zoey, they are laughing at Zayn and Niall. Liam was right; she's having a great time, but they have to leave now.  
  
He walks towards them and then,  
  
"My Louis is here!" Zayn calls at the top of his voice. He's very drunk now.  
  
Harry turns around and sees Louis. He's hugging Sylvi.  
Zayn and Niall are obnoxiously calling his name. Louis signals for them to wait a second.  
  
Harry goes to stand by Mia's side and places his hand on her lower back. She's smiles.  
  
Harry wants to tell her they need to go. Now. But he can't get the words out. And now Louis is walking towards them.  
  
Niall hugs him immediately and starts telling him about Zayn and the bet, and Zoey, and so many things at once, and nothing makes sense, and Zayn's interrupting him. Harry just wants them to shut up. He just wants to go.  
  
Louis just giggles. "What are you talking about?" He asks.  
  
"Zayn's a loser, that's what I'm talking about," Niall answers.  
  
"Give me break," Zayn snorts.  
  
Then Zoey hugs Louis, she kisses his cheek and compliments his hair.  
  
Harry breathes out. And he notices too. Louis' hair looks a bit wet but it's perfectly styled in a quiff. He probably took a shower. That explains why it took him so long to show up. But, Harry remembers now, Louis always takes too long to get ready.  
  
"Thanks, love," Louis tell her, sweetly.  
  
Zoey smiles and then whispers something that makes Louis laugh. Crinkles by his eyes.  
  
Then his eyes meet Harry's. Louis looks down immediately, and his smiles fades. Maybe Harry's staring. Fuck. He doesn't want to make Louis feel uncomfortable. _Fuck_. Louis looks at him again, and now Harry looks away.  
  
"We haven't meet," he hears Louis say. He clears his throat, "I'm Louis," he says. He's looking at Mia. Fuck.  
  
"Nice to meet you," Mia says. They shake hands.  
  
"Uh, I- sorry," Harry says finally, "this is Mia, my girlfriend."  
  
Louis smiles. Not his usual smile. Fuck, Harry is sure it's because he's acting weird.  
  
"Louah!" Zayn calls. He hugs Louis from behind, "let me get you a drink, bro."  
  
Harry thinks that drunk Zayn is obnoxious as hell, but right now he's grateful for the interruption.  
  
"Here," Niall hands him a drink, "ready for ya, mate."  
  
"Niall is gonna win Louis' friendship now," Zoey comments.  
  
Zayn laughs and hugs Louis tight, "no way, Nialler," he says flipping Niall off.  
  
"Don't be so sure," Niall jokes.  
  
"Actually, I have to talk to you, bro," Zayn says to Louis, he's serious now.  
  
Niall and Zoey make fun of him. They tease him about wanting Louis' attention all for himself.  
  
"He's all mine!" Zayn shouts, and walks away with his arm around Louis' waist.  
  
Harry breathes in. And out.  
  
He wants to go. And Mia is giving him a weird look.  
  
\---  
[Louis]  
"Turns out I was right and Harry's a clueless dumbass," Zayn says as soon as they're alone. In the bathroom. Zayn's weird.  
  
"Uh, why?"  
  
"Remember when you asked if you look gay enough for Harry to realize, and I told ya it doesn't really matter 'cos Harry's dating and all that."  
  
Louis nods. Of course he remembers, "yeah, to the point, please."  
  
"Okay. Harry just found out. And he was," Zayn sighs, "surprised? I guess."  
  
Louis swallows, "how? Like, did he say something?"  
  
"No, bro, but," Zayn pauses.  
  
"But what?!" Louis is getting anxious. He was not expecting this tonight. And he shouldn't feel like this; he's out and proud. Why is he feelings like he should have came out to Harry personally? He doesn't own shit to Harry, or anybody. He doesn't have to explain shit to anybody. He's been through that, when he was younger. It shouldn't be like this anymore. He stopped giving fucks a while ago. Why is he so nervous? Why is this weird feeling growing in his chest. Why is he so scared now?  
  
"I don't know, man. He said- he was acting weird. I don't know," Zayn shurgs, "I was ready to fight him and shit, y'know, 'cos he was like-"  
  
"Like what, for fuck's sake!"  
  
"Hey, calm down."  
  
"I can't calm down! Fuck. You're drunk."  
  
"And what about it?" Zayn asks annoyed.  
  
"You don't even drink!"  
  
"Well, now I do." Zayn sounds hurt.  
  
Louis sighs, he's being unfair. "Sorry," he says sincerely. "I'm nervous. I don't care if you're drunk, you were having fun. I'm sorry, Zen."  
  
"'S okay, bro." Zayn sighs. He hugs Louis. "Listen. He said he was okay with it. I guess he just... didn't expect it. I don't know."  
  
Louis sits on the floor. "How come you were talking about that?" He says after a moment.  
  
"Yeah. That's the other thing." Zayn sits by his side.  
  
"What? What other thing?" Louis asks immediately.  
  
"Matt's here. Fuckin' loser."  
  
"Shit." Louis closes his eyes.  
  
"When I saw him I swear I was about to fuckin' hit someone. _Liam_ , actually, I was about to hit Liam for inviting him. And Harry was there," Zayn scratches his chin, "he asked, y'know, why I was making a big deal and shit... And Liam told him that.. that asshole's your ex."  
  
"Fuck." Louis sighs, "whatever, I don't give a shit about Matt."  
  
Louis closes his eyes again.  
  
"Lou, we can go home, if you want."  
  
"No. 'M okay."  
  
"You sure?" Zayn whispers. He's drunk but he's sweet. He's always sweet.  
  
Louis leans and kisses Zayn cheek.  
  
"You look hot," Zayn says, "I love your hair like this."  
  
Louis smiles, "thanks."  
  
"Let's go back to the party, yeah?"  
  
Louis nods.  
  
\---  
Everything is a fucking mess.  
  
Niall is drunk, Zayn is drunker. Matt is an asshole.  
  
Everybody's was leaving, it was like 5 AM. Matt tried to talk to Louis and Zayn almost hit him. Louis is not sure what Matt wanted to to tell him, he just remembers Zayn pushing Matt away. He started shouting like a mad man. He said Matt was the biggest dumbass and he didn't deserve Louis. Niall, drunk as fuck, was encouraging Zayn. He doesn't even know Matt, for fuck's sake. Then Matt told Zayn that he was a failure, he called him lazy and a loser and told him he was going nowhere in life. That's when Niall lose his shit and throw his drink at Matt.  
  
And then Sylvi started laughing. And Louis did too.  
Liam was proper angry. He told Matt he should leave. Sylvi and Louis were laughing like crazy. Niall and Zoey joined as soon as Matt left.  
  
Harry was laughing too. That was a good thing because he was acting weird earlier.  
  
Liam told everyone to leave. Louis kept apologizing but he was laughing, so it probably sounded like bullshit. Sylvi told him not to worry.  
  
Then Mia said she was sleepy and Harry said they should take Niall home. They left.  
  
Harry came back right away and helped Liam clean. He said Mia went to bed and Niall took the couch.  
  
Louis offered Zoey his bedroom and told her he would sleep with Zayn. She was a bit drunk but he managed to go to bed.  
  
Zayn.  
  
He's passed out on Liam's couch. Liam's gonna kill him. And Niall. He's gonna kill them tomorrow.  
In a few hours, actually.  
  
Thank fuck Sylvi had a great time.  
  
\---  
[Harry]  
For some reason all this mess was relaxing, it contrasted the mess inside his head and now he doesn't feel like drowning.  
  
Harry doesn't know exactly why he freaked out a moment ago. There are a lot of things he didn't consider, and now he feels stupid.  
  
Now Louis is trying to wake Zayn up. Failing at it, and Sylvi can't stop laughing.  
  
"Niall's got an angel face but he's a bad influence," she says.  
  
Then Harry helps him. They managed to get him to their apartment. Zayn's awake now, and they help him sit on the couch. Harry's never been here before.  
  
"What is _that_?!" he asks amused, his eyes wide.  
  
There's a huge photo of Zayn and Louis on the wall. It's ridiculously huge. They look younger in the photo.  
  
Zayn's arm around Louis neck and he's holding Louis hand. Zayn looks like a different person, his eyes look like half moons; he's smiling so hard that it looks like his cheeks hurt.  
  
Louis looks a bit embarrassed, "Zayn and me," he laugh, "that was our senior year."  
  
"It's cool," Harry says. "What are you gonna do with it when you, like, have to move out separately, eventually."  
  
"We're gonna live together forever," Zayn says.

Both, Harry and Louis laugh.  
  
"That's a good answer, babe," Louis tells him. "Or we can make a copy," he adds.  
  
"Nah, let's live together forever, bro."  
  
Louis smiles fondy, "Zaynie, let's get you to bed."  
  
\---  
Zayn falls asleep as soon as his body touches the bed. Louis kisses his forehead and then they go back to the living room.  
  
Harry sits. He considers it for a moment. Maybe he should just leave. Maybe Louis wants to go to bed too. Fuck.  
  
But then Louis sits by his side. Good.  
  
"It's a bit scary," Harry says pointing at the photo.

Louis laughs, "it's stupid."  
  
"For how long have you been friends?" Harry asks, conversasionally.  
  
"Since forever. I don't even remember my life before Zayn."  
  
Harry smiles.  
  
[Louis]  
He tells Harry all about his and Zayn's childhood. And it's late but they keep talking.  
  
"What does he do?" Harry asks, "Zayn," he specifies, "he's always at home."  
  
Louis sighs, he remembers what Matt said earlier, but he knows that Harry's asking sincerely, no bad intentions and all that. Just curiosity.  
  
"Okay, you're not gonna believe me," he says, grinning.  
  
"Try me."  
  
"You can't tell him I told you," Louis warns.  
  
Harry nods.  
  
"He's a YouTuber," Louis says.  
  
"No way," Harry shakes his head.  
  
"He is! He makes lots of money, actually. He's a famous YouTuber."  
  
"I've never heard of him."  
  
"Well, he has never shown his face, actually," Louis shurgs, "but I'm sure he'll gain more subscribers if he did," he points out.  
  
Harry laughs, "no way, man."  
  
"I'm serious!" Louis laughs too. "He's probably the most famous gamer! I'm not kidding! He kind of, I don't know, he explain video games and show some tricks, y'know, all that kind of shit that geek kids like."  
  
"That's so cool," Harry says.  
  
"Yeah, he's doing amazing," Louis comments, "I think he's been attending some meetings, I'm not sure, he'll tell me when everything's eh, a sure thing."  
  
Harry looks amazed, "does he have merch and all that?" He asks.  
  
"Yeah, I wear his merch all the time just to piss him off," Louis says smiling.  
  
"I can't believe you told me Zayn's secret," Harry says after a moment, "you're a shitty friend," he jokes.  
  
Louis laughs. He's so happy. Harry's being so nice about this. And this is very important to Louis because _Zayn_ is very important to him.  
  
"What's the story about it?" Harry speaks again. He's pointing at the photo again.  
  
Louis is a bit surprised that Harry wants to keep talking. He checks his phone; it's almost six.  
  
"No story," Louis says, "just a stupid thing we did when we moved here." he pauses. "Zayn is, y'know, very important to me," Louis doesn't know why but he feels like he _has_ to tell Harry everything. All the time. Even if Harry makes him feel so nervous. He swallows hard. He's not sure about what's going to happen now. Whatever, he thinks. Harry already knows. He breathes out, "he was the first person I came out to," Louis waits for a reaction but Harry's expressionless.  
  
Louis wishes he could read Harry's mind right now.

"And he was the only one who knew it for like a year, before I came out to, y'know, the rest... my family, at school," he keeps talking, he moves a bit uncomfortable.  
  
"What did he say?" Harry asks.  
  
Louis relaxes. "He was very supportive," he smiles. "Literally the best friend ever."  
  
Harry smiles for the first time in the past minutes that had felt like hours.  
  
Then he nods like he wants Louis to keep talking. So he does.  
  
"I had a big crush on him actually," Louis laughs.  
  
"Really? And what happened?"  
  
"Oh, when I came out to everybody, and I started dating and all that, I realized it was," he pauses, "I don't really know. Maybe I liked him because he was the only boy who was nice. He was the only one who cared about me. I don't know. It was the classic crush on the hottest guy of the class," he shrugs.  
  
"And Zayn was the hottest guy?"  
  
"You say it like he isn't the hottest guy in the world," Louis says half joking because Zayn probably is.  
  
Harry laughs.  
  
"He was my first kiss too," Louis speaks again.  
  
"Zayn?" Harry asks, incredibly surprised.  
  
"Yeah," Louis giggles, "this guy, Michel, asked me out, and it was my first date, I was nervous as shit, and of course I was scared 'cos I was sixteen and I had never kissed anybody, not even a girl when I pretended I liked them," he laughs, "so Zayn taught me. We practiced for hours the day before my date," Louis keeps laughing, "Zayn's a good friend," he says fondly, "and a good kisser," he adds.  
  
Harry snorts and shakes his head, "you two are something else."  
  
Louis nods. He agrees; he and Zayn are really something else. Partners in crime, partners in life.  
  
"So, it was a one time thing, _or_?" Harry asks, suggestive.  
  
"Yeah, Zayn's straight," he says and makes a face.  
  
\---  
Louis wakes up at 3 PM, Zayn's obnoxiously snoring, but Louis doesn't give a shit. He's happy, relieved.  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry :( i'm lazy  
> thanks for reading, thanks for your comments.  
> love you xxxx


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